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Aseff denies any

secret talks with

India on Kashmir

SIKANDER HAYAT

ISLAMABAD: The government is not averse to the non-governmental dialogues aimed at improving Pakistan-India relations but of the 34 meetings held none has succeeded in persuading New Delhi to shun repression in Occupied Kashmir, Foreign Minister Aseff Ahmad Ali said here on Thursday.

In reply to a question in the Senate he said though the government "neither encourages nor discourages" private talks, it is not involved in these contacts". "There is no question of any "behind-the-scene" or secret talks with India", he said.

Reiterating Pakistan's stated position on the terms to resume dialogue with New Delhi, he said: "Pakistan believes in a meaningful result-oriented and well-structured dialogue with India". He indicated that the talks can be resumed on the basis of six Indian and two Pakistani non-papers already exchanged between them.

Aseff said Pakistan was ready to discuss Kashmir with India under the Simla Accord which also stipulates the Kashmir issue as a problem needing to be resolved through bilateral dialogue. Indian policy, he said, "is contradictory, in that on the one hand New Delhi says Kashmir cannot be discussed and on the other it is signatory to the Simla Accord which has determined that Kashmir is an outstanding issue, to be resolved by the parties".

As the Foreign Minister gave a certain interpretation to the effectiveness of the UN resolution in resolving the Kashmir problem, the opposition sharply differed with him and staged a token walk-out. Given the sensitivity of the debate on this aspect of the Kashmir problem Chairman of the Senate Wasim Sajjad later expunged the conflictual discussion between the government and the opposition.

He told another questioner that the Congress-funded US Institute of Peace (USIP) had not so far initiated any dialogue on Kashmir, nor had the government nominated anyone to participate in the dialogue "if and when it is hosted by the Institute". The USIP, the minister explained, "works as an autonomous body with distinguished scholars on its staff".

In reply to another question the foreign minister said the F-16 aircraft which Pakistan contracted to buy from the United States "will be sold to a third country, and when the deal is out Pakistan will get the price as well as the differential".

He said the passage of the Brown Amendment had reversed the position which obtained under the Pressler law. Then, all economic and military assistance to Pakistan was prohibited. But the enforcement of the Brown Amendment would allow economic assistance, including insurance cover to American businessmen through Overseas Private Insurance Corporation (OPIC), assistance for anti-narcotics purposes, assistance for humanitarian projects, for anti-terrorism and for peace-keeping operations.

The Foreign Minister said the Brown Amendment had also opened opportunities for military-to-military contacts and training, return of military equipment, transfer of technology, or defence services other than F-16s and exemption of storage charges for this equipment.

Asked if Pakistan was going to recognise Israel the Foreign Minister replied in the negative, explaining that recognition would be accorded only after a comprehensive settlement of the Middle-East problems and in line with the policy of the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC).