Obama aide says Indo-Pak talks right approach to Kashmir issue

New Delhi, Nov 23 (PTI) Seeking to allay apprehensions
on the Kashmir issue, a key aide of US President-elect Barack
Obama has said the new administration understands that the
right approach on it was through an Indo-Pak dialogue process
and voiced confidence that Washington will support the
exercise from outside.

Former Assistant Secretary of State for South Asia
Karl Inderfurth said "too much has been made" out of Obama's
interview to Time magazine and MSNBC TV channel where he
stated that he wants to try and resolve the Kashmir issue
seriously and would devote serious diplomatic resources to get
a special envoy in there.

"I think there is no question on the right approach to
Kashmir. It is just to allow the two parties -- India and
Pakistan -- to address it themselves bilaterally taking into
account the concerns and ambitions of the Kashmiri people. I
have no doubt at all that would be the approach of the new
administration," Inderfurth told Karan Thapar on CNN-IBN's
'Devil's Advocate' programme.

"I also believe that if the United States can be
supportive of that process that the US should be, because this
is a major issue that affects not only the two countries, but
also the region, I don't believe that the President-elect has
made any decision about how he intends to actually accomplish
helping support that process," he said.

"And if the special envoy role is looked at it will
only be pursued if it would be both helpful and appropriate.
He has said that. So I think that too much has been made of
that. Let him take office, he still has a few more days to get
through the transition and January 20 we will see where the
administration goes," he said.

Holding that there has been progress on the Kashmir
issue between India and Pakistan, Inderfurth lauded the
confidence building measures like people-to-people contact and
cross-LoC trade undertaken by the two governments.

"These kind of actions should be taken between the
parties and the US can be supportive of this. The US should
bring together the both parties and it is not an unfriendly
interference. It is just a friendly facilitation," he said.


"It is not friendly interference. I do not want to
interfere in India's internal affairs," he said.


Asked whether the President-elect thinks that India
and Pakistan can resolve the Kashmir issue bilaterally or they
should be pushed to do so even after 60 years, Inderfurth
said: "I can't answer this question for him. But, If I were to
answer this, I would say that this issue has to be solved
bilaterally and US can help them."

Inderfurth also recalled the "variable" role played by
the then US President Bill Clinton during the Kargil War in
1999 and said that the US did its best to avoid a crisis
"that could have had" more serious complications.

"I also wanted to recall the variable role played by
Bill Clinton in the Kargil War. He spoke to the then Prime
Minister A B Vajpayee, not to give any directions, but to
explain to him about the ways he is trying to get the crisis
resolved," he said.

When asked whether the then Pakistani Premier Nawaz
Sharif sought a US role during the crisis, he said: "Pakistan
always wanted to get the US involved in sorting out the
problem.
"But the US has been saying that it is not its role
and that just (wanted) to involve (itself) in the peace
process. But what the US can do is try to support a dialogue
between the two parties to resolve the issue."

Asked whether Clinton failed to deliver his promise to
Sharif that the US will involve itself in the peace process,
"I would say it is wrong (reports that Clinton promised
Sharif). What Clinton (had) said was that the US will help in
facilitating a dialogue between the two countries. That is
what he did."

The former diplomat said a "regional approach" that
includes India, Iran and China was the best way to deal
with the situation in Afghanistan.

"There should be a regional approach to deal with
Afghanistan. A regional approach would include not just only
Afghanistan and Pakistan, the two key players, but India and
Iran. There would be no solution to what is happening in
Afghanistan unless India is seen as a player in that process
(besides) Iran and China and other countries," the member of
Obama campaign team said in reply to a question.

Asked whether the US thinks that a 'hyphen' should
once again be inserted between India and Pakistan, he said:
"In my perspective, the hyphen was pulled out during the
Clinton administration. The Bush administration has been
maintaining the de-hyphenation. There is no hyphenation
between India and Pakistan and there should not be one between
India and China.

"We will deal with India separately and Pakistan
separately. And the same case (is) with China too," he said.
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