Jade
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WASHINGTON: Pakistan rejected a US suggestion to sign a non-aggression pact with India, arguing that its public would not support the idea unless Washington treated the two countries on an equal footing and New Delhi reduced its "footprint" in Afghanistan.
The US proposal was mooted by Senator John Kerry in exchanges with Pakistan's Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani in February this year, according to a cable sent to the state department by the American Ambassador to Pakistan Anne Patterson which forms part of the controversial WikiLeaks cabledump. Kerry, who chairs the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee, also pressed Pakistan to present the Indian government with its plan to tackle terrorism, saying this would be a clear "confidence builder" that would make India more willing to move forward in talks about Kashmir and water disputes.
"He (Kerry) emphasized that India, Pakistan and the United States' futures depended on their governments' willingness to 'challenge old suspicions' and work together, and suggested that Pakistan and India sign a non-aggression pact. Kerry said that the US. and other countries of goodwill would be prepared to help in any way possible," the cable records.
But Gilani ignored the suggestion to present an action plan on terror, and instead, "noted that in order to gain public support for this process, the US had to 'treat India and Pakistan equally.'" He added that India would need to gain Pakistan's trust and indicated that reducing the Indian footprint in Afghanistan and halting Indian support of militants in Balochistan would be steps in the right direction, the cable records.
While India's alleged role in Balochistan features in more than one cable, at no time does Pakistan present any evidence to substantiate this nor do American interlocutors endorse the Pakistani charge.
Put on the defensive by the American Senator, the February 19 cable reports that Gilani agreed to present Kerry's proposal to the the GOP leadership. "He was amenable to the idea of a rapprochement in the India-Pakistan relation, but expressed concern that the public would not support the idea," it records, adding that Kerry said that in order to gain public support for this initiative, Pakistan needed to clearly outline the long-term economic benefits of improved bilateral relations, such as improvements in social development and increased investments and trade, to the Pakistani people.
Another cable suggests that the Pakistani leadership lacks the skill and the inclination to make such a case to the Pakistani people involved as they are in internecine battles.
A separate cable which records Senator Kerry's meeting with President Zardari at the same time also shows the Pakistani leadership reluctant to push for peace with India unless Islamabad's suspicions and fears, which the US clearly believes are unfounded, are addressed. Told by Kerry that cooperation on counter terrorism with the Indians could lead to Indian compromises on key Pakistani issues such as Kashmir and water use in subsequent meetings, Zardari "justified continued suspicion of India, citing recent 'confirmation' that there was Indian involvement in the Mumbai attacks," the cable notes.
The Pakistani President, who has been variously described as dimwitted, inept, and corrupt in some of the cables, then argues that India had increased its military spending 30 percent this year and describes this as a direct threat to Pakistan. "When Kerry pointed out the Chinese threat to India, Zardari responded that Indian tanks cannot operate in the Chinese border region and could only be intended for an attack on Pakistan. India has 4,700 tanks, he explained, while Pakistan has only 2,600," notes Patterson's cable, quoting Zardari as saying, "Capability creates a fear."
The US proposal was mooted by Senator John Kerry in exchanges with Pakistan's Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani in February this year, according to a cable sent to the state department by the American Ambassador to Pakistan Anne Patterson which forms part of the controversial WikiLeaks cabledump. Kerry, who chairs the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee, also pressed Pakistan to present the Indian government with its plan to tackle terrorism, saying this would be a clear "confidence builder" that would make India more willing to move forward in talks about Kashmir and water disputes.
"He (Kerry) emphasized that India, Pakistan and the United States' futures depended on their governments' willingness to 'challenge old suspicions' and work together, and suggested that Pakistan and India sign a non-aggression pact. Kerry said that the US. and other countries of goodwill would be prepared to help in any way possible," the cable records.
But Gilani ignored the suggestion to present an action plan on terror, and instead, "noted that in order to gain public support for this process, the US had to 'treat India and Pakistan equally.'" He added that India would need to gain Pakistan's trust and indicated that reducing the Indian footprint in Afghanistan and halting Indian support of militants in Balochistan would be steps in the right direction, the cable records.
While India's alleged role in Balochistan features in more than one cable, at no time does Pakistan present any evidence to substantiate this nor do American interlocutors endorse the Pakistani charge.
Put on the defensive by the American Senator, the February 19 cable reports that Gilani agreed to present Kerry's proposal to the the GOP leadership. "He was amenable to the idea of a rapprochement in the India-Pakistan relation, but expressed concern that the public would not support the idea," it records, adding that Kerry said that in order to gain public support for this initiative, Pakistan needed to clearly outline the long-term economic benefits of improved bilateral relations, such as improvements in social development and increased investments and trade, to the Pakistani people.
Another cable suggests that the Pakistani leadership lacks the skill and the inclination to make such a case to the Pakistani people involved as they are in internecine battles.
A separate cable which records Senator Kerry's meeting with President Zardari at the same time also shows the Pakistani leadership reluctant to push for peace with India unless Islamabad's suspicions and fears, which the US clearly believes are unfounded, are addressed. Told by Kerry that cooperation on counter terrorism with the Indians could lead to Indian compromises on key Pakistani issues such as Kashmir and water use in subsequent meetings, Zardari "justified continued suspicion of India, citing recent 'confirmation' that there was Indian involvement in the Mumbai attacks," the cable notes.
The Pakistani President, who has been variously described as dimwitted, inept, and corrupt in some of the cables, then argues that India had increased its military spending 30 percent this year and describes this as a direct threat to Pakistan. "When Kerry pointed out the Chinese threat to India, Zardari responded that Indian tanks cannot operate in the Chinese border region and could only be intended for an attack on Pakistan. India has 4,700 tanks, he explained, while Pakistan has only 2,600," notes Patterson's cable, quoting Zardari as saying, "Capability creates a fear."
