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U.S. Senator: Musharraf's Talk Will Be Bold, Principled & Fresh
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| Musharraf to give long-awaited speech soon |
By IOL correspondent in Islamabad, Aamir Latif
ISLAMABAD, Jan. 9 (Islam Online) A visiting nine-member bipartisan delegation of U.S. senators has said that the lingering dispute of Kashmir between Pakistan and India could not be resolved without a third-party mediation.
"Mediating presence is necessary. I am worried that without mediation progress will not occur," the team leader senator, John McCain, said while addressing a press conference in Islamabad on Tuesday.
He said that Pakistani President, General Pervez Musharraf's step to crackdown on what he called "Islamic militants" would defuse the tensions between Pakistan and India.
The delegation, which called on Musharraf Tuesday afternoon, told reporters that the president would announce some "bold, principled and fresh" measures in his address to the nation very soon.
"These will be so bold, principled and fresh that they will elicit a response from the Indian government," Senator McCain said.
He hoped that after the pronouncements of Musharraf, both Pakistan and India, friends and allies of the United States, would move some of their troops
away from the borders.
He said that the proximity of over a million soldiers of both these countries was a very serious matter for the people of this region and the world.
"So long as they are there, with tension high there is always a possibility of an accident or there is a possibility of someone who wants to inflame tension
taking some action," he said.
Answering a question whether the speech would bring about a dramatic change, another member of the group remarked that he left the meeting with an impression that it would change the history of Pakistan.
He said Musharraf was confident that Pakistan could emerge as a moderate, tolerant and modern nation with a majority of Muslim population.
The speech that Musharraf will make within the next few days will be critical and lead to the de-escalation of tensions in the region, he added. "It will perhaps open an entire new chapter in the history of relations between the two countries," he said.
When asked whether the measures likely to be announced by the Pakistani president would change Pakistan's position on Kashmir, McCain said his impression was that the president was thinking of very serious and fresh initiatives.
"He (President Musharraf) is in search of initiatives that will not only reduce the tensions but will also begin a whole new chapter on Kashmir dispute," he said, adding that they wished him well.
He said the Indian leaders should listen carefully to Musharraf's word in the next few days and they would certainly find something there that would lead them to a negotiating table.
McCain said it would also help them remove some of the troops from the borders.
When asked about his comments on a statement by Indian leaders that steps being taken by Musharraf were only cosmetic, he said Musharraf had in fact taken very significant steps to rein in the extremists.
The president, he said, in the meeting this afternoon with the U.S. senators, reaffirmed his commitment of continuing to do that.
President Musharraf, he said, was fully aware of the fact that to bring peace, stability, economic prosperity and development to his people he would have
to deal with terrorism and religious extremism.
Regarding apprehensions about U.S. commitment to support Pakistan, he said, the Americans recognized that they could not allow any country to become a breeding
ground for terrorists.
For that, he said, they would have to remain committed to the development of the entire region. He said it was not just for the United States but for all of its allies to contribute towards the development of the region.
Concerning the issue of the presence of American forces in the region, they said the same message that was conveyed in their meeting with the leaders of the region including Turkey, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan and Pakistan was that the U.S. soldiers would remain engaged here.
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