Pak negates Kashmir issue was resolved through backchannel

Rezaul H Laskar

Islamabad, Feb 7 (PTI) Pakistan has negated claims
that the Kashmir issue was close to settlement through back
channel diplomacy between Islamabad and New Delhi, with the
country's foreign minister saying there was no mention of such
developments in the records of the Foreign Office.

Shah Mehmood Qureshi said neither he nor the people
of Pakistan have "any knowledge" about the proposal claimed to
have been evolved by the previous military regime of President
Pervez Musharraf.
"Any such proposal was never debated and there is no
record of it in the Foreign Office," he said in an interview
to a TV news channel.
Former Foreign Minister Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri has
claimed that India and Pakistan had come close to resolving
the Kashmir issue and it had been just an announcement away.
Kasuri has said the proposed solution was kept secret and
there was no record of it in the Foreign Office.
Musharraf too has said that an agreement had been
reached in backchannel talks with India on Kashmir on the
basis of proposals mooted by him.
Qureshi said despite the importance of back channel
diplomacy, disputes are finally solved through formal efforts.
Four rounds of the composite dialogue with India were
completed during the tenure of the previous government while,
one round was held by the current Pakistan People's Party-led
government, he said.
The Mumbai attacks of November 2008 had affected the
process and "unfortunately India adopted a rigid position" in
the wake of that incident, he said.
But he claimed that "domestic pressure is growing on
India" to resume the composite dialogue, authorities there are
finding it hard to maintain their positions.
Replying to a question, he said that India's alleged
involvement in insurgency in certain areas of Pakistan was
raised by Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani during his meeting
with his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh at Sharm el-Sheikh
in Egypt last year.
Pakistan has certain outstanding issues with India
which are being recognised by the world but it does not mean
that the two countries cannot move forward, he remarked. There
may be progress towards the solution of the Kashmir issue but
it cannot be said that it will be resolved during the tenure
of the present government, he added.
Qureshi also said it is in Pakistan's interest to have
good relations with its neighbours because the country is
facing a number of economic challenges that need attention.
"To have normal relations with neighbours is a key step in
this direction," he said.
Responding to another question, he said that engaging
with the US was in Pakistan's interest. Pakistan's
relationship with America is neither one of compliance nor of
confrontation, he added.
The US wanted Pakistan to expand its military
operations against militants but the country did not comply
with their demand, he said. "We will keep our domestic
conditions in view for making such decisions," he said. PTI
RHL