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Mainstream, Vol XLVIII, No 26, June 19, 2010

India-Pakistan-Afghanistan: The Path Ahead

Sunday 20 June 2010, by Nirupama Rao

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It is a truth universally acknowledged that India, Pakistan and Afghanistan share bonds and linkages that transcend the immediacy of the present. Often, we are also treated to the refrain that India-Pakistan issues have impeded the collective progress of the region. There are those who maintain that for peace and stability in Afghanistan, India and Pakistan should resolve all their differences. The complexities in such equations are not resolvable through the application of simple formulae, although it can be conceded that peace between the two largest countries in South Asia would have a salutary impact on the destiny of the entire region. Of course, the issue of peace and stability in Afghanistan needs to be addressed separately and comprehensively and not within the matrix of India-Pakistan relations.

I believe that the issue of peace and stability in Afghanistan has facets to it which concern governance, which concern issues of grassroots level administration and deliverance of public goods like transport, trade, health, education and women’s empowerment, the mitigation of the culture of the gun, the eradication of terrorism, the creation of a strong Afghan National Army and police, and structuring the role of regional countries in ensuring that long term peace and security in Afghanistan cannot be a bridge too far....

When the searchlight is turned on what we—as India—do in Afghanistan, the vista is clear. India is engaged in developmental and humanitarian work to assist the Afghan people as they build a peaceful, stable, inclusive, democratic and pluralistic Afghanistan. The landscape of destruction must change. India neither sees Afghanistan as a battleground for competing national interests nor assistance to Afghan reconstruction and development as a zero sum game... Our $ 1.3 billion assistance programme is aimed at building infrastructure, capacity building in critical areas of governance, health, education, agriculture etc. and generating employment. We have paid a heavy price in terms of the lives lost of our citizens who work in Afghanistan, as we are targeted by those whose agendas conflict with the emergence of a strong and stable Afghanistan. Last year, over 300,000 Afghans—mainly women and children—trekked long distances to avail of free medical treatment from the Indian medical missions in Kabul, Jalalabad, Kandahar, Herat and Mazar-e-Sharif. The economy of battle-scarred Nimroz province was transformed with the building of the Zaranj-Delaram highway and the homes of the people of Kabul have been lit afer more than a decade by the Pul-e-Khumri transmission line from the Uzbek border. These are, by no definition, activities that are inimical to the interest of the people of Afghanistan or its neighbours. We have sought to assist Afghanistan within our means. In fact, the international community as a whole has made great contributions in terms of diplomacy and development, in assisting Afghanistan to stand on its feet....

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We seek a stable, peaceful, economically progressing Pakistan. Secondly, we sincerely desire peace with Pakistan. Thirdly, we have to learn to live with the asymmetries in our sizes and capabilities. Such differences of scale should not deter us from working with each other. Pakistan should shed its insecurity on these counts. Fourthly, India is a neighbour which has exhibited true restraint despite misguided and serious provocations. Fifthly, the entry of radical ideology into the domain of religion, and, the consequent implications for peace and security between India and Pakistan, making differences over Kashmir even more difficult, must be prevented. Radical, terrorist forces are also increasingly battling for larger space in a deathly struggle that seeks to overwhelm moderate, democratic forces in Pakistani civil society...

There is agreement today on both sides that dialogue is the only way forward. Consequently, our Prime Ministers have charged the Foreign Ministers and Foreign Secretaries with the responsibility of working out the modalities of restoring trust and confidence in the relationship and thus paving the way for a substantive dialogue....

For bridging what is called the "trust deficit" between the two countries, we are ready to address all issues of mutual concern through dialogue and peaceful negotiations. Let me, however, pose a question here. The progress in our Composite Dialogue, especially from 2004 to 2008, and the frequent references to the deliberations of the back channel during the same period, do not diminish the import of one dilemma. How do we deal with the persistent threat of terrorism?... Every terrorist attack, including the one in Mumbai, hardens Indian public opinion, making our task more difficult. Terrorism as a continuation of war by other means, and the use of terrorist groups selectively, as strategic assets against India, cannot, and must not, continue. As an intrinsic part of the long-term vision of relations it desires with India, Pakistan must act effectively against those terrorist groups that seek to nullify and to destroy the prospects of peace and cooperation between our two countries.

The Composite Dialogue, which was resumed in June 2004, was predicated on the solemn commitment given by Pakistan that it would not allow any territory under its control to be used for terrorism directed agianst India. Four rounds of the Composite Dialouge were completed. During the fifth round, the dialogue process was paused after the terrorist attack on Mumbai. We appreciate the relevance and achievements of the Composite Dialogue, particularly in the period 2004-08. During this phase, all issues of mutual concern, including Jammu and Kashmir, were discussed. Amongst the achievements, we can cite a number of Confidence Building Measures related to peace and security, such as agreements on pre-notification of flight testing of ballistic missiles and reduction of the risk from accidents relating to nuclear weapons, hotlines between various officials on both sides; enhanced people-to-people contacts through bus/truck and train services; revival of the Bilateral Joint Commission after 16 years; setting up of the judicial committee to look into the humanitarian issue of civilian prisoners/fishermen held in each other’s jails and growth in bilateral trade by 550 per cent between year 2003-04 and 2007-08 from US $ 344.59 million to US $ 2.23 billion.

On Jammu and Kashmir, progress was made based on the common understanding that boundaries could not be redrawn but we could work towards making them irrelevant; and people on both sides of the LoC should be able to move freely and trade with one another. Towards this goal, a number of cross-LoC CBMs were put in place, which included the opening of five crossing points on the LoC; introduction of triple entry permits; increase in frequency of Srinagar-Muzaffarabad and Poonch-Rawalkot bus services; starting of cross-LoC trade on Srinagar-Muzaffarabad and Poonch-Rawalkot routes through movement of trucks, etc.

On the way forward, we have to build on these achievements. We also have to reaffirm the progress made through complex negotiations and dialogue through patient and unsung effort, whether in the composite dialogue or back- channel diplomacy, during this period. We must seek creative solutions.

[Excerpts from a talk at the Delhi Policy Group, June 13, 2010]

The author is the Foreign Secretary of India.

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