NEW DELHI, Oct 20: India today rejected outright Pakistan Premier Nawaz Sharif’s proposal for US intervention in resolving Kashmir issue, asserting Kashmir is an integral part of this country and that it will be a “waste of time” for anybody to even try to question this.
External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid made it very clear that India will not accept any US intervention, as the matter is a bilateral one agreed to between the two countries.
The Government also got the backing of principal Opposition party BJP for its stand with senior party leader Murli Manohar Joshi saying no third party has the right to interfere on the matter, and appealed to US President Barack Obama to reject Sharif’s proposal.
“There is no way in which India will accept any intervention on an issue that is entirely accepted in the Simla Agreement as a bilateral issue between India and Pakistan,” he said.
He said Kashmir is an integral part of India and no one should raise a question on that. “It is a waste of time for anybody, no matter how eminent, to be even trying to question it,” he said.
Ahead of his meeting with President Barack Obama, Sharif today sought US intervention in resolving the Kashmir issue.
Joshi said India has already made it very clear that not just the Kashmir issue, but any matter between India and Pakistan would be solved only by the two countries, and no third party has the right to get involved.
“Nawaz Sharif’s statement on US intervention is not accepted,” he said.
Joshi said he would like to tell the UPA Government that not only BJP, but the whole country is against American intervention.
“I appeal to Mr Obama not to interfere in this matter, and he should reject Pakistan’s proposal(of US intervention),” he added.
Terming the Kashmir matter as a bilateral issue, CPI National Secretary D Raja said, “Why should the United States be allowed to interfere in an issue which is being dealt with between India and Pakistan.”
“Pakistan Government should realise this. Islamabad had earlier tried to internationalise this issue but had failed,” he said.
Khurshid also said that any US economic aid to Pakistan must not be used in a manner that is detrimental to India’s security and strategic interests and hoped that Washington will keep that in mind as a “good strategic partner”.
On whether the ceasefire has collapsed, he said, “I don’t think that is true. There are many violations. It is a large number of small armed fires. It is unacceptable and certainly counter-productive. But I don’t think we can at this point say that ceasefire has collapsed. That would not be a correct assessment of the situation.
On US economic aid to Pakistan, Khurshid said, “I hope this is done keeping India’s interests in mind as United States always assures us.”
“Though India did not want such (third party) intervention, but the world powers should get involved to resolve the (Kashmir) issue,” he told reporters in London during a stopover while on his way to US wherein he will meet Obama on Wednesday.
“India and Pakistan both were nuclear powers and the region was a nuclear flash point,” he said.
About Sharif’s comments on nuclear weapons, Khurshid said, “This is not new. We should concentrate on the important thing that the elements of dialogue that have been obstructed, that have been undermined and slowed down because of the events that have happened at the Line of Control on the border.”
Sharif said for the last 60 years both sides were entangled in an arms race. “The situation can become dangerous. India has nuclear bomb, so do we; India develops missiles, so do we. There should be a limit to it. We all should think about it,” he was quoted as saying.
According to Khurshid, the important thing was to ensure peace and tranquility and complete compliance of the ceasefire of 2003, to which Pakistan had willingly agreed.
On the repeated ceasefire violations, he said, “It is of course a problem and we need to take it more seriously. But the Army is well prepared. This is an area that is best left to the Army.
“Of course, it is an upsetting inconvenience. I think we will be able to handle it. As long as we have no casualties, the violations remain an irritant. The casualties add to the tragedy and the pathos and I hope that we will not see any more casualties.”
On the straining of relations with China on issue of stapled visas, Khurshid said India does not accept stapled visas.
“We don’t accept stapled visas. We certainly don’t accept anyone assuming or saying or establishing a case that parts of Indian territory actually belongs to them… China or any other country,” he said.
The Minister said the Indian perception is totally different from that of China on this issue, but added “the issue of Arunachal Pradesh needs to be addressed before the larger issue of bilateral visa regime.” (PTI)
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