More has been read into Obama's statement: Inderfurth

New Delhi, Nov 8 (PTI) A key adviser to U.S.
President-elect Barack Obama sought to playdown the Democrat
leader's reported suggestion that he could ask former
President Bill Clinton to mediate between India and Pakistan,
saying "more has been read" into the statement.

Karl Inderfurth, adviser to the U.S. President-elect,
said Obama will be a "strong supporter" of the Indo-Pak
process aimed at resolving the Kashmir issue.

"From my reading of Obama's comments, I think more has
been read into that than he intended," Inderfurth told Outlook
in an interview.

In an interview to 'Time' magazine, Obama had said that
working with Pakistan and India to try to resolve the Kashmir
"crisis in a serious way" would be the "critical tasks" for
his administration.

Obama had said he had talked to Clinton on being a
special envoy on Kashmir.

Inderfurth, who was Assistant Secretary of State in the
Clinton administration, said the Obama government would be a
strong supporter of the ongoing dialogue between India and
Pakistan aimed at resolving the Kashmir issue.

Citing Indo-Pak backchannel discussions as well as the
meeting between the national security advisers of the two
countries, Inderfurth said, "that's where the action should be
in terms of moving forward on the Kashmir issue through those
bilateral channels."

"Obama will be supportive of that process, will encourage
that process. You will see President Obama being a strong
supporter of that process," Inderfurth said.

Inderfurth also said that he did not see the incoming
administration's stance on the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty
(C.T.B.T.) becoming a problem in Indo-U.S. relations, which
will "continue on an upward trajectory."

Asked whether the President-elect would press India to
sign the C.T.B.T., he said, "Obama believes that the U.S.
should ratify the C.T.B.T. He also wants to see greater
reductions in our nuclear weapons -- something we will have to
work with the Russians.

"If we do these things we will be in much better position
to go to other countries, including India, and say let's work
together on this."

Inderfurth said that the C.T.B.T. won't become a problem
between India and the U.S. "I don't anticipate it being a
problem because we have now recognised that we are tied
together on these kind of issues and have now surmounted a
major obstacle that existed for over a quarter of a century --
and that was being on opposite side of the nuclear cooperation
issue.

"We are now partners; it is going to open up a new area
for us to deepen our relationship," he said.

Inderfurth said he did not expect the Obama
administration to immediately bring about foreign policy
shifts because of the ongoing economic crisis.

He said the administration would take immediate steps on
three issues -- close the Guantanamo Bay detention facility,
outlaw torture, and assume leadership role on climate change.

"He (Obama) would like to work with India in combating
global climate change," Inderfurth said.