Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Tuesday said that he was “surprised” by India’s reaction to US President Donald Trump’s offer of mediation for resolving the Kashmir issue which, according to him, has held the subcontinent hostage for 70 years.
“Surprised byreaction of India to Pres Trump’s offer of mediation to bring Pak & Indiato dialogue table for resolving Kashmir conflict which has held subcontinenthostage for 70 yrs,” Khan, who is here on a three-day working visit,tweeted at the end of his maiden trip to the US.
“Generations of Kashmiris have suffered and aresuffering daily and need conflict resolution,” he tweeted.
‘Peaceful neighbourhood’ a priority of Pakistan’s foreignpolicy’
Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has told US PresidentDonald Trump that normal ties with India would be beneficial for both thecountries, asserting that a “peaceful neighbourhood” was a priorityof his foreign policy, according to officials here.
The meeting between Prime Minister Khan and President Trumpat the White House on Monday was the first summit-level engagement betweenPakistan and the United States since 2015, according to the Foreign Office(FO).
Khan, who is on a three-day visit to the US, underlined inhis talks with Trump that “Pakistan would continue to pursue dialogue anddiplomacy to resolve longstanding disputes, including the core dispute of Jammuand Kashmir,” it said.
He said that a “peaceful neighbourhood” was apriority of Pakistan’s foreign policy, it said.
Peace and stability in the region would allow Pakistan toharness its rich human resource potential to generate growth and spur regionalconnectivity, the FO said.
“The Prime Minister said Pakistan was convinced thatnormalisation of relations with India would be mutually beneficial for the twocountries,” the FO said.
President Trump also “expressed his readiness to play afacilitating role in resolution of the Kashmir dispute”.
The two leaders held comprehensive discussions with a focuson building a broad-based and enduring partnership between Pakistan and the USand strengthening cooperation between the two countries to bring peace,stability and economic prosperity in South Asia.
They reviewed progress of the Afghan peace andreconciliation process.
“Prime Minister Khan reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitmentto continue to support the process in good faith. He added that pursuing theprocess was a shared responsibility,” the FO said.
Pakistan’s delegation included Chief of Army Staff of thePakistan Army General Qamar Javed Bajwa and Director-General of theInter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Lieutenant General Faiz Hameed.
The President accepted Khan’s invitation to visit Pakistan,the FO added.
Meanwhile, Pakistan’s media on Tuesday gave prominentcoverage to Trump’s offer of mediation on Kashmir.
The readiness to intervene on the Kashmir issue was givenprominent coverage, with newspapers splashing it on the front pages.
Dawn newspaper reported that the US President offered tomediate the Kashmir dispute between India and Pakistan.
“Trump offers mediation on Kashmir at Modi’srequest” was its front page headline.
The Express Tribune in its headline stated that Trump”offered to mediate on the decades-long Kashmir dispute between India andPakistan, a move that would signal a shift in long-standing US policy that theissue must be solved bilaterally”.
The News International reported that “in a pleasantdeparture from his past stance, US President Donald Trump said Prime MinisterNarendra Modi wanted him to mediate on the Kashmir issue”.The Nation also based its main news on Kashmir mediation offer by Trump.