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Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh - Source: Reuters
Questions raised by India's prime minister about the control of
the Pakistani army and Pakistan's aims in Afghanistan are an excuse
for delaying the resumption of talks, Pakistan's foreign minister
said.
India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh told CNN International
television he was not clear if Pakistan's president was in control
of the army and that Pakistan's objectives in Afghanistan were not
necessarily those of the United States.
In the interview coinciding with a US visit, Singh also said he was
worried about Pakistan's nuclear arsenal falling into the wrong
hands and complained that Islamabad had not brought to justice
perpetrators of last year's Mumbai attack.
"I am disappointed," Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood
Qureshi said.
"My feeling is India is dragging its feet and is looking for
excuses to not resume the composite dialogue."
The nuclear-armed neighbours have fought three wars since 1947 and
nearly went to war a fourth time in 2002, after a militant attack
on India's parliament.
The United States wants the rivals to reduce tension and resume
dialogue on a range of issues from trade to the disputed Kashmir
region so Pakistan can focus on the war against the Taliban and al
Qaeda on its Afghan border.
India suspended a five-year-old peace process that included broad
talks known as the composite dialogue with its neighbour after the
Mumbai attacks in November last year.
India blamed the attack on Pakistan-based militants it said were
supported by state agencies.
Pakistan condemned the assault on India's financial capital in
which 166 people were killed and denied any official
involvement.
Indian and Pakistani leaders and senior officials have met several
times on the sidelines of international gatherings over the past
year but India insists Pakistan must take forceful action against
militants before talks are resumed.
Indian concerns
Pakistan has acknowledged that the Mumbai assault was plotted and
partly launched from its soil and is prosecuting seven suspects in
a closed-door hearing.
Qureshi said that showed Pakistan's seriousness in dealing with
those behind the Mumbai attack.
Qureshi also rejected Singh's doubts about Pakistan's objectives in
Afghanistan, saying the world recognised Pakistan's resolve in
fighting militancy and its sacrifices.
The Pakistani army went on a long-awaited offensive on October 17
against Pakistani Taliban in South Waziristan near the Afghan
border.
The United States, weighing options for how to stem an intensifying
insurgency in Afghanistan, has welcomed the offensive but is keen
to see Pakistan tackle Afghan Taliban factions in lawless border
enclaves.
Referring to Singh's question about who was in charge of the
Pakistani army, Qureshi said: "These statements do not help and
this is not in line with reality."
Qureshi also dismissed Singh's remark about the safety of
Pakistan's nuclear weapons.
The United States and India share security concerns centred around
Afghanistan, but India fears US policy panders to Pakistan, Indian
analysts say.
India is uneasy that US strategy fails to reflect its concern about
what India sees as Pakistan's backing of militants launching
attacks in both India and in Afghanistan, analysts and government
officials say.
"Singh's comments are a reiteration of fears of any US policy for
the region that leaves out Indian concerns," said Christopher Raj,
professor of international affairs at New Delhi-based Jawaharlal
Nehru University.
"India wants more regional involvement in stabilising Afghanistan
to neutralise Pakistan's claim that Afghanistan is their
backyard."
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