Washington, April 02: Pakistan has, over past several
decades, been using terrorists as a strategic tool against
India to achieve its goals in Kashmir, several American
experts have told a powerful Congressional panel, warning the
US against mediating between the two nations on the issue.
Testifying before a subcommittee of the House Oversight
and Government Reform Committee on "Afghanistan and Pakistan:
Understanding and Engaging Regional Stakeholders," experts
told lawmakers that this dangerous policy needs to be ended.
They also observed that such a policy now seems to have
backfired as the same terrorists and extremists groups have
gone against the Pakistani establishment, which is reflected
in series of terrorist attacks in Lahore recently.
"Over the last many years Pakistan has been covertly
supporting Kashmir terrorist groups -- now they`re called
Punjabi terrorist groups -- to harass India in Kashmir," said
Wendy Chamberlin, president of the prestigious Middle East
Institute and former US Ambassador to Pakistan.
"Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad are some of these
groups. Indians regard them as just as much a terrorist group
as al Qaeda, and certainly the horrific attack at Mumbai is
evidence of that," said Chamberlin.
Lisa Curtis, Senior Research Fellow for South Asia in the
Heritage Foundation`s Asia Studies Center, cautioned the US to
avoid falling into the trap of directly mediating in the
decades-old Kashmir issue.
"The US is more likely to have success in defusing Indo-
Pakistani tensions if it plays a quiet role in prodding the
two sides to resume talks that had made substantial progress
from 2004 to 2007, even on Kashmir," she said.
Curtis said Pakistani security officials calculate that
the Taliban offers the best chance for countering India`s
regional influence.
"Pakistan also believes that India foments separatism in
its own Baluchistan province. Given these concerns, I think it
is in India`s interest to ensure that its involvement in
Afghanistan is transparent to Pakistan, and the US has a role
to play in ensuring this," she said.
Chamberlin said Pakistan had hoped for a more friendly
government in Afghanistan so that "it would not have to face
an adversary on both the western and the eastern border".
"Pakistan has been quite... distressed that Indians have
re-established themselves so strongly in Afghanistan after
2001," he said testifying before the National Security and
Foreign Affairs Subcommittee.
Chamberlin said Pakistan is upset about Indian aid
projects along its border and about Indian road construction
and has been fearful that India is using its foothold in
Afghanistan as a platform for a spy network.
"It`s accused India of launching some anti-government
assistance to groups within Pakistan from India," he said,
adding, Pakistan is disappointed to have lost its defense
strategy of strategic depth.
Bureau Report
