M A I N   N E W S

Stop infiltration, UK tells Pak

New Delhi, April 3
Britain has voiced concern over the “increasing evidence” of infiltration across the Line of Control (LoC) from Pakistan and said it wanted to see Islamabad “encouraging” an end to all kinds of militant and terrorist operations in Jammu and Kashmir.

At the same time, it also sought the beginning of a political process which would enable people of a both sides of the LoC to live in peace and harmony.

In an interview to Doordarshan’s World View programme, British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said the joint statement by him and U-S Secretary of State Colin Powell from Camp David was issued “because of our grave concern about the increasing evidence of infiltration, across LoC from Pakistan, to India”.

He also referred to “recent terrible atrocities” which led to the massacre of many women, children and men in certain parts of J and K.

“So we are calling on the Pakistani Government to do everything it can to stop infiltration and we want to see it encouraging an end to all kinds of militant and terrorist operations in Jammu and Kashmir, whether they are operated from the Indian or Pakistani side of the border.

Asked about the response from China on putting pressure on Pakistan to stop this kind of terrorism, Mr Straw said during a recent conversation, the Chinese Foreign Minister had accepted that there was “great potential” across the LoC for further escalation of violence.

The Chinese Minister had assured him that Beijing would do anything to reduce this tension across the LoC, he said.

On the Iraq developments, Mr Straw said “the military coalition will initially fill in the vacuum left by the absence of Saddam Hussein but would swiftly pave the way for installation of a civilian government run by Iraqi people. “But we and the Americans want to move very swiftly from what amounts to a military situation to a situation in which there is a civilian government...” he said. PTI