Pak army chief for de-escalation of tensions with India

Rezaul H Laskar

Islamabad, Dec 29 (PTI) Facing the heat from the US and
other major countries, Pakistan's powerful army chief Gen
Ashfaq Parvez Kayani today spoke of easing tensions with India
and the need to "de-escalate and avoid conflict".

In the first public statement since the Mumbai terror
attack, Kayani, the Chief of Army, which is believed to have
huge influence over affairs of the state in Pakistan, backed
moves for de-escalation of tensions with India.

A brief military statement was issued after Kayani met
Chinese Vice Foreign Minister He Yafei, who was dispatched
here by Beijing to help ease the Indo-Pak stand-off, at the
Army Headquarters in Rawalpindi near here.

"The Chief of Army Staff highlighted the need to
de-escalate and avoid conflict in the interest of peace and
security in the region," the statement said.

Pakistan's civilian leadership also continued its 'no
war' stance, with Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani voicing
opposition to any military action.

"We have never wanted war with anybody... We also want
our soil should not be used for terrorism," Gilani said as
international pressure mounted on the country to avoid
confrontation with India in the wake of the Mumbai attacks.

The US and UK have pressed Pakistan to take concrete
action against those responsible for the November 26 Mumbai
terror attacks. New Delhi has asked China, Saudi Arabia and
Iran to use their influence on Islamabad to rein in terrorists
operating from Pakistan.

He Yafei's visit here came days after Chinese Foreign
Minister Yang Jeichi spoke to his Indian and Pakistani
counterparts, Pranab Mukherjee and Shah Mahmood Qureshi
respectively, on the situation in the subcontinent. Yang
pressed the two sides to maintain stability in the region.

Stressing that there could be no parallel centres of
power in the country, Gilani described Pakistan as a
"responsible and peaceful" nuclear state and said it wanted
good relations with its neighbours.

"We don't want any parallel government in the country
and don't want the writ of the government be challenged," he
said at the campus of the National University of Science and
Technology here, without elaborating who he was referring to.

The statements by Pakistani military and civilian
leadership came as an army spokesman confirmed that the two
countries had been in touch through the Director General of
Military Operations and this apparently had helped lower the
tensions.

The DGMOs usually make contact on Tuesday on a routine
basis but they spoke to each other over the weekend in an
"extraordinary move", 'The News' daily quoted a top military
official as saying.

"That was only possible with the consent of top military
leaders of both the countries. Apparently, this helped lower
the tension," the official said.

The DGMOs made contact after Pakistani officials said
thousands of troops had been moved from the militant-infested
northwestern tribal areas to the Indian border and leave had
been cancelled for soldiers.

The DGMOs discussed the situation along the Line of
Control and the international border and other issues, Dawn
News channel reported. It quoted sources as saying that the
conversation was part of "routine contacts" between the two
top military officials.

Inter-Services Public Relations chief Maj Gen Athar
Abbas too confirmed the talks between the DGMOs. PTI RHL
SAK
NNNN

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