Pakistan President Talks Tough on Kashmir

Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf insisted Monday that Kashmir was the central issue between his country and India but said he was willing to discuss it in tandem with other issues.

Musharraf, who arrived here on Sunday morning for a two-day landmark summit with Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, told a group of editors of various Indian publications that Islamabad would not close the door to a dialogue with New Delhi.

But Pakistan would not discuss economic cooperation and confidence-building measures unless Kashmir was clearly identified as the core issue between the two neighbors, he noted.

However, he expressed his belief that differences between the two sides could be ironed out in course of his meeting with Vajpayee, saying "I am an optimist. Let us hope for the best".

"If India expects that I should ignore Kashmir, I better buy back the Neharwali Haveli and take up permanent residence there," he said in a reference to his ancestral home in old Delhi.

During his 75-minute interview with the editors, Musharraf said he could not understand why India was unwilling to even admit that Kashmir was a dispute.

"OK, call it an issue and not a dispute. We can not even agree to a word, how can we move forward," said the Pakistani President, indicating a deadlock on Kashmir in his talks with Vajpayee.

He told the Indian media that people in Pakistan did not trust the Indian government, saying his people suspected that there was a design behind New Delhi's refusal to accept Kashmir as the core issue.

India and Pakistan needed a "structured way to proceed forward" in their dialogue, Musharraf said, adding that he could meet Vajpayee again at any time.

Pakistan had clearly stated its stand on Kashmir on many occasions in the run-up to the summit, while India had responded that Kashmir was only part of the "composite dialogue" to be held between the two neighbors.

Talking about both countries' efforts to improve bilateral relations, Musharraf said that with the holding of the summit, step one has already been taken, while step two might be taken on Monday, with more steps to be taken in the future.

Well informed sources here said foreign secretaries of both governments had worked on a draft joint statement, which is expected to be issued later on Monday, until 4 am on Monday.

To help remove differences, Musharraf and Vajpayee, who had already held two rounds of talks which lasted about four hours on Sunday, began another round of one-to-one talks on Monday, said a Star News channel report.

The talks on Sunday were described by both sides in a brief statement as "very cordial, frank and constructive." And Indian information and broadcasting minister Swaraj was quoted by a TV channel as saying that the two sides had discussed a wide range of issues including trade and nuclear.

However, an overnight statement by a Pakistan government spokesperson on Sunday pointed out that the Indian minister "had omitted to mention the extensive discussions between the two leaders on Kashmir".

Kashmir had been the focus of discussion in 90 minutes of one- on-one meeting between Vajpayee and Musharraf, said the spokesperson, adding that no other issue could be addressed unless the core issue was discussed and resolved. "Progress on Kashmir had to be in tandem with progress on other issues," he emphasized.






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