Islamabad, July 19: US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has said that India and Pakistan would have to undertake bold steps in order to resolve the Kashmir issue.
Clinton, who is on a two-day visit to Pakistan, said the US cannot force its discretion on India and Pakistan regarding Kashmir, and added that the issue should be resolved through dialogue between the two countries.
Clinton said the Indo-Pak dialogue should be a continuous process, as there is no short cut to the resolution of the Kashmir issue. She, however, said that the US has no desire to mediate on Kashmir.
Asked about the US condemning crackdowns on protesters in Iran and describing the demonstrations in Jammu and Kashmir as an internal matter of India, Clinton said the situation in Pakistan and India was different from that in Iran.
Clinton made the remarks after a delegation-led by Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi briefed her on the meeting between the Foreign Ministers of India and Pakistan here on July 15.
The Pakistani delegation told Clinton about the reasons why the Foreign Ministers had been unable to make any headway in their talks.
The Pakistani side contended that the Indian team led by External Affairs Minister SM Krishna had focussed only on the issue of terrorism and shown no interest in addressing Pakistan’s concerns, including the Kashmir issue, Siachen and the need for a regional strategic restraint regime, the sources said.
Clinton has reportedly persuaded the Foreign Ministers of India and Pakistan to continue the dialogue process, and meet again on the sidelines of the Kabul Conference starting on Tuesday.
According to reports, she has talked to Indian External Affairs Minister SM Krishna as well as his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mehmood Qureshi on the telephone to raise the prospect of another ‘talk about talks.’
The Secretary of State is believed to have told Krishna that she wanted to see the resumption of talks between India and Pakistan, and assured that Pakistan was being persuaded to take ‘credible action’ against the perpetrators of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks.

QURESHI RAISES KASHMIR ISSUE
With Clinton by his side, Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi Monday raked up the Kashmir issue and said his country wants a sustained dialogue with India.
Qureshi, who has been blowing hot and cold against India in the last few days after a deadlock in the Indo-Pak talks, said, “sustaining dialogue with India and finding a just solution of the Kashmir dispute” was part of the “convergent interest” of US and Pakistan.
The Pakistan Foreign Minister referred to Kashmir and India in his opening remarks at the US-Pak Strategic Dialogue with Clinton here this morning. He also called for appointing a special US envoy on Kashmir.
“This vision is driven by our convergent interest in the present day including fighting the twin menace of extremism and terrorism,” Qureshi said, referring to the mutual interest of the two countries in the region.
During the joint press conference by Clinton and Qureshi, there was no reference to Kashmir, India or last week’s meeting of the two Foreign Ministers.

US ACKNOWLEDGE GILANI’S EFFORTS TO NORMALISE TIES
Clinton has acknowledged Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani’s “personal role in efforts to normalise relations with India” and hoped these moves would bear fruit in the near future.
Clinton made the remarks during a meeting with Gilani late last evening, said a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s office.
Gilani said Pakistan wants “good neighbourly relations with India” and would like both sides to “address all issues and disputes between them peacefully”.
The comments of the two leaders came days after the Foreign Ministers of India and Pakistan failed to make headway in talks held in Islamabad on July 15. (With inputs from PTI)

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