With Pakistani and Indian diplomats scheduled to meet in Islamabad this week, the United States has said it has been encouraged that the two South Asian countries are holding dialogue to tackle issues, impacting their bilateral relations.
“I think we are encouraged by the dialogue that has been ongoing between India and Pakistan and the upcoming visit” to Islamabad by Indian foreign secretary, State Department Spokesperson Victoria Nuland said at the daily briefing.
The foreign secretaries of the two South Asian nuclear neighbors will have two rounds of talks over two days beginning Thursday with Islamabad likely to underscore the need to move forward with negotiations on longstanding Jammu and Kashmir dispute. In addition, a number of security issues including terrorism cause tensions between the two regional powers. A four-year old peace process between the two countries broke down in 2008 when India blamed Pakistan-based militants of Mumbai attacks. Water issues revolving around New Delhi’s plans to build a number of hydroelectric dams on rivers flowing into Pakistan from Indian occupied Kashmir region add to tensions. Islamabad strongly objects to buidling dams on rivers whose water it has exclusive rights to under Indus Water Treaty.
The meetings, headed by Pakistan’s Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir and his Indian counterpart Nirupama Rao, are part of the resumption of dialogue process following a meeting between Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani and his Indian counterpart Dr. Manmohan Singh in Thimpu, Bhutan in April last year. At the State Department, spokesperson was careful not to comment on any role Washington could be playing on some of the issues.
“I am not going to speak to our intelligence conversations with either India or with Pakistan,” Victoria Nuland said.
“We urge them to talk about these issues directly, as I hope they will,” the spokesperson added when an Indian journalist wanted to know the U.S. views on Indian demand that New Delhi wants Islamabad to take action against suspected terrorists. APP
The foreign secretaries of the two South Asian nuclear neighbors will have two rounds of talks over two days beginning Thursday with Islamabad likely to underscore the need to move forward with negotiations on longstanding Jammu and Kashmir dispute. In addition, a number of security issues including terrorism cause tensions between the two regional powers. A four-year old peace process between the two countries broke down in 2008 when India blamed Pakistan-based militants of Mumbai attacks. Water issues revolving around New Delhi’s plans to build a number of hydroelectric dams on rivers flowing into Pakistan from Indian occupied Kashmir region add to tensions. Islamabad strongly objects to buidling dams on rivers whose water it has exclusive rights to under Indus Water Treaty.
The meetings, headed by Pakistan’s Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir and his Indian counterpart Nirupama Rao, are part of the resumption of dialogue process following a meeting between Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani and his Indian counterpart Dr. Manmohan Singh in Thimpu, Bhutan in April last year. At the State Department, spokesperson was careful not to comment on any role Washington could be playing on some of the issues.
“I am not going to speak to our intelligence conversations with either India or with Pakistan,” Victoria Nuland said.
“We urge them to talk about these issues directly, as I hope they will,” the spokesperson added when an Indian journalist wanted to know the U.S. views on Indian demand that New Delhi wants Islamabad to take action against suspected terrorists. APP
