Daily Times

WASHINGTON: Pakistan has deeply regretted Indian designs to scuttle all diplomatic efforts for bilateral and international dialogue and its stated intent to use water as a weapon against people of Pakistan in flagrant violation of international treaty obligations.

While delivering a keynote address at the World Affairs Council, a Washington-based think tank, Pakistan’s Ambassador Jalil Abbas Jilani called on the US and the international community to help resolve the Jammu Kashmir issue and did not allow New Delhi to distract world from the atrocities, as it was committing on the innocent Kashmiri people.

He regretted that India was scuttling all diplomatic efforts for a dialogue, including its refusal to engage constructively at the SAARC forum. “The peace and stability in South Asia will not be possible without resolving underlying disputes, particularly the Jammu Kashmir being the core issue; measures for nuclear and missile restraint; and balance with regard to conventional arms,” he said.

“The proposal of Pakistan for a strategic restraint regime, based on these three inter-locking elements, remains on the table,” he said while drawing the attention towards Pakistan’s efforts for peace in the region. Pakistan has positioned itself as a mainstream partner in the international non-proliferation regime as well as the global efforts to strengthen nuclear security and safety, he said.

On the issue of Kashmir, Jilani said that that Jammu Kashmir as a nuclear flashpoint must not be underestimated. “The international community and the US in particular need to play a role in seeking a peaceful settlement of Kashmir issue in accordance with the relevant UN Security Council resolutions,” he added. He said that the recent indigenous uprising in Kashmir bears testimony to the aspiration of Kashmiri people in seeking what the world community had promised but not delivered.

He emphasised that India must not be allowed to deflect international attention from human rights violations and atrocities in Indian-held Kashmir, under the pretext of political expediency. The ambassador said that recently, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s special envoys visited Washington to share Pakistan’s perspective on the grave human rights situation in the Indian-held Kashmir with the US.

The ambassador shared perspective on trends and prospects in the longstanding relationship and its continuing significance to the foreign policy of Pakistan with regard to the relations of Pakistan and US. He said that Pakistan enjoys a long standing strategic partnership with the US and, though the history of “our relationship has seen its ups and downs, it has certainly survived multiple tests of times.”

Jillani said that the leadership of the two countries shared the conviction that a robust, long-term bilateral relationship remains critical to regional and international security and prosperity. While referring to the existing strategic partnership and have a broad range of convergences, the ambassador said, “We continuously endeavour to build on convergences and wherever there is divergence we try to minimise and remove such divergence. Most importantly, it is the common fight against the menace of terrorism that forms the centerpiece of Pak-US cooperation.”

Highlighting Pakistan’s role as a frontline state in the global war against terrorism, the envoy said that tens of thousands of Pakistani citizens and thousands of security personnel had been killed or injured in terrorist attacks. Pakistan had also suffered a loss of over $100 billion and Pakistan’s commitment to fight terrorism was second to none, he added.

On the situation in Afghanistan, Ambassador Jilani said that peace and stability in the war-torn country remained a common objective of Pakistan and the US.