International

U.S. condemns attack in Doda

By Sridhar Krishnaswami

WASHINGTON MAY 31. The United States has strongly condemned the latest militant attack in Doda district of Jammu and Kashmir calling it the "most irresponsible'' action especially in the context of the highly-charged situation in the subcontinent.

" ... in the current charged climate of tension between the two nuclear armed neighbours poised for war, this attack appears to be aimed at taking tensions to a higher level and undermining regional stability. So we strongly condemn the latest incident,'' the State Department spokesman, Richard Boucher, said on Thursday.

The Bush administration is further making the point that only terrorists would stand to benefit from a war in South Asia. "...there is a danger that irresponsible elements such as these will try to spark a conflict between India and Pakistan by engaging in terrorist provocations; and it's vital for everyone to do their utmost to reduce violence, lower the rhetoric and exercise restraint, bearing in mind that only terrorists would benefit from a war in South Asia," Mr. Boucher added.

The U.S. has been using the current tensions between India and Pakistan to constantly remind Islamabad and Pervez Musharraf that words have to be matched by deeds on the ground — a message that came out of the State Department again on Thursday.

"...we have heard again and again from the Pakistani Government as you have heard publicly from President Musharraf that he was certainly not going to allow Pakistani territory or territory controlled by Pakistan to be used for terrorist actions. And as we've discussed before, those are the commitments that we're looking for him to carry out, in fact," Mr. Boucher maintained.

The administration is also making the point that the "role'' of the U.S. in the India-Pakistan dispute over Kashmir is quite different from the one it has been playing between the Israelis and the Palestinians.

"We have a different role historically; we have a different role in fact," Mr. Boucher said stressing that Washington was not a mediator between India and Pakistan and that while it was prepared to facilitate, that (talks) should be agreeable to both India and Pakistan. In fact, the State Department is saying that the first priority in the present context is to deal with the threat of tension and danger and getting things on the "right track''; the second priority would be to get the parties talking; and this dialogue would have to settle the problem taking into account the wishes of the Kashmiri people.

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