Kashmir in Wikileaks

Leaks disclose secrets of in-camera sessions

PESHAWAR: Whistle-blowing WikiLeaks besides its diplomatic disclosures, has also disclosed the secrets of in-camera sessions of the parliament pertaining to Kashmir and extremist elements in Pakistan, Geo News reported on Saturday.

In its disclosure, WikiLeaks, citing an anonymous source, has stated that ISI informed the parliamentarians and senior officials of the government about some qualities of Taliban elements. The spy agency also informed them about real extremists.

In the briefing, it was stated that some elements in the extremists’ groups would be useful in Kashmir or operation at some other places. The source said that there was difference of opinion among the participants of the in-camera session over this.

 

Pakistan trying to ‘stir the pot’ in Kashmir'

WASHINGTON: Indian Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao told the United States earlier this year that Pakistan’s latest moves indicated that it was trying to “stir the pot” in Kashmir.At a meeting with visiting US special envoy Richard Holbrooke in January, Rao expressed concern over the ‘sharp increase in unseasonal Pakistan-inspired violence and preparation for violence’. She pointed to incidents of cross-border shelling along the Line of Control and in Punjab, increased infiltration, and transfer of terrorist hardware.“They are clearly trying to ‘stir the pot’ in Kashmir,” according to a US diplomatic cable of the meeting, leaked by WikiLeaks on Thursday. “In her view, Pakistan is trying to deflect attention to its eastern border from the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, where the focus ought to be.”The cable, put out by US Ambassador to India Timothy Roemer, said  Holbrooke and special adviser Vali Nasr briefed Rao on “the evolving political landscape in Pakistan with a weakening President Zardari and the fluid dynamic between the various centers of power, including COAS Kayani, Prime Minister Gilani, PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif and Chief Justice Choudhary”.In what clearly would not be music to Pakistani ears, Holbrooke said at the very start of his meeting that he had come to New Delhi ‘with a clear vision of the centrality of India to the strategic landscape in the region’.Significantly, at one point while dealing with Rao’s suggestion that the US should apply pressure on Pakistan to stop supporting the Afghan Taliban, Holbrooke signalled Washington’s own frustration on this score.Holbrooke went on to comment that “Pakistan views certain Taliban groups, particularly the Quetta Shura, as an insurance policy to protect its strategic interests in Afghanistan and it is not clear that anyone can easily influence Pakistan to turn on these groups, although the US is exerting tremendous pressure”.Against this backdrop, Holbrooke cited Washington’s “own difficulties in dealing with the Pakistan government” and suggested that “many people overestimate the US influence in Pakistan”, noted the cable.The special envoy lauded India’s role in Afghanistan, stating that he favours the Indian assistance programmes. He pointedly stated that he “is not influenced by what he hears in Islamabad”.Holbrooke, taking on board India’s acute concerns, made it clear that the US would not let the Taliban enter into a power-sharing agreement in Afghanistan.

India must 'decrease footprint in Afghan' to gain Pak trust: Gilani

SLAMABAD: India needs to "decrease its footprint in Afghanistan and stop interfering in Balochistan" in order to gain Pakistan's trust, Prime Minister Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani told US Senator John Kerry during a meeting earlier this year, according to a leaked US embassy cable posted by WikiLeaks.

"During a February 16 meeting with Senator John Kerry, Prime Minister Gilani spoke at length about the state of the Indo-Pakistani relationship. Gilani indicated that the GOP was willing to resume talks with the Indian government, and pointed to the upcoming meetings between India and Pakistan's Foreign Secretaries as evidence of such," said a cable, which was classified as "confidential".

Gilani further said that Pakistan and India had also resumed back channel discussions, and that "improving bilateral relations with India was in Pakistan's best interest as it would enable the GOP to focus all of its attention on securing its western border."

"Gilani, however, noted that in order to gain public support for this process, the U.S. had to treat India and Pakistan equally. He added that India would need to gain Pakistan's trust and indicated that reducing the Indian footprint in Afghanistan and halting Indian support of militants in Balochistan would be steps in the right direction," revealed the cable.

Kerry told Gilani that the upcoming meeting between the Indian and Pakistani Foreign Secretaries had "enormous potential", and urged the Pakistan government "not to allow pressure from the local media and the masses to derail these efforts."

"Kerry argued that dialogue with India was an opportunity to create new security arrangements that could change the regional dynamic. While assuring Gilani that the effort would not be U.S.-driven, Kerry indicated that the USG was open to the idea of serving as a mediator to help facilitate the resumption of the Pakistan-India Composite Dialogue," the leaked cable said.

The senator pointed out out that following the recent bombing in Pune, India was "focused on counter terrorism ., and suggested that the Pakistan government present the Indian government with its plan to tackle terrorism.

"He (Kerry) said that this would be a clear 'confidence builder' that would make India more willing to move forward in talks about Kashmir and water disputes," said the cable.

He also suggested that Pakistan and India sign a non-aggression pact, and added that "the US and other countries of goodwill would be prepared to help in any way possible".

"Gilani agreed to present Kerry's proposal to the the GOP leadership. He was amenable to the idea of a rapprochement in the India-Pakistan relation, but expressed concern that the public would not support the idea," according to the leaked document.

"Kerry said that in order to gain public support for this initiative, the GOP needed to clearly outline the long-term economic benefits of improved bilateral relations, such as improvements in social development and increased investments and trade, to the Pakistani people," the document added.

In 2007 Musharraf said agreement on Kashmir coming very soon

An agreement on Kashmir is coming sooner than anyone might think, an optimistic Pervez Musharraf had told top U.S. Congressional leaders in 2007, informing them that India and Pakistan were on verge of a deal on the contentious issue, leaked cables from WikiLeaks show.

In a meeting with Congressional leaders in Islamabad on January 27, 2007, the then Pakistani President said he and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh were on the verge of an agreement on Kashmir and this could be signed as early as April that year.

“Soon -- sooner than anyone might think,” Musharraf is quoted as saying in a State Department cable -- released by Wikileaks -- to the Congressional delegation that included Nancy Pelosi, the then Speaker of the House Representative; Ike Skelton, Chair -- House Armed Services Committee; and Tom Lantos, Chair -- House Foreign Affairs Committee.

Mr. Musharraf appreciated Dr. Singh’s flexibility, relating his personal invitation for the President to attend the SAARC Ministerial in New Delhi in April, the cable said.

“Musharraf explained his decision to decline the invitation, saying that there is too much euphoria and expectation at present. If I went to Delhi, but we didn’t sign an agreement, the people would think we had failed,” he said.

“Musharraf said that he has conveyed two options to New Delhi: either PM Singh comes to Pakistan before April to sign an agreement or the two hold a signing ceremony at the SAARC Ministerial,” it said.

Mr. Musharraf shared his enthusiasm for the just-concluded visit to Pakistan by three Jammu and Kashmir leaders of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference, noting that he had advised them to engage and bring on board other Kashmiris.

“An agreement should not land like a bombshell...

Leaders must prepare their publics, as he is doing in Pakistan,” the cable said.

26/11 closed door for talks on Kashmir: US envoy told Holbrooke

Washington, December 01, 2010

• The Mumbai terror attacks, which were carried out by the Pakistan-based LeT terror outfit, closed the door for any Indo-Pak discussions on Kashmir, according to a top American diplomat. The remarks by the then American ambassador to Islamabad Anne Patterson were part of a cable dated February 4,

2009, which she wrote for US special envoy for Af-Pak region Richard Holbrook ahead of his maiden trip to Pakistan in his new capacity, following which he also visited India and Afghanistan, showed the classified US documents released by whistle-blower website WikiLeaks.

"Although the conventional wisdom says that Mumbai closed the door on Kashmir discussions, there is no doubt that Pakistan believes tackling the Kashmir issue remains the key to regional security," Patterson wrote in the cable.
Noting that Indo-Pakistan relations were still simmering, Patterson, according to the leaked cable, said that in the wake of Mumbai attacks and accelerating militant control of Pakistani territory, the military/ISI faced the need to re-evaluate its historic use of proxy tribes/militant groups as foreign policy tools.
Patterson said that to avoid a potential Indian military strike, Pakistan needed to show progress on prosecuting those responsible for the Mumbai attacks.
"Interior Minister (Rehman) Malik will outline to you his plan to prosecute Lashkar-e-Taiba/Jamaat-ud-Dawa (LeT/JUD) suspects now in custody. The key will be whether the military/ISI is ready to turn the Mumbai suspects over to civilian law enforcement, and whether India considers Pakistani actions adequate," the ambassador said.
"(Army chief Ashfaq Parvez) Kayani, in particular, wants to avoid a reckoning with his past leadership of ISI. Despite arrests of key LeT/JUD leaders and closure of some of their camps, it is unclear if ISI has finally abandoned its policy of using these proxy forces as a foreign policy tool; we need to continue pressing them to realise this strategy has become counter-productive in Kashmir, Afghanistan and FATA (Federally Administered Tribal Areas)," the cable said.
Patterson told Holbrook that the Pakistani Foreign Ministry quashed the National Assembly debate of a resolution signed by leaders of most of the political parties urging the US to appoint a special envoy on Kashmir, or add that portfolio to your plate.

"However, privately, (President Asif Ali) Zardari and FM (Shah Mahmood) Qureshi have indicated they would welcome your engagement on Kashmir," Patterson wrote in the cable to Holbrooke.

Pak focuses on Kashmir: Wikileaks

ISLAMABAD: Kashmir also appears among the diplomatic flood-peaks of Wikileaks stories raging across the globe these days.

 

In the context of Pakistan-France mutual relations Jasmine Zerinini, Head of the French Government’s Inter-Agency Afghanistan-Pakistan Cell is quoted by Paris-based US Embassy as saying that “the Pakistani government is eager for trade concessions, but does not want any political dialogue unless it is focused on Kashmir”.

 

In its secret message to US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton the US Embassy in Paris quotes Zernini: “France is working to reinforce its political relations with Pakistan, and was expecting President Sarkozy to visit Pakistan early in the second quarter of 1010. The GOF (Govt of France) does not want to return to a relationship based on military equipment sales, as in the 1980s, and is instead focusing on counter terrorism in addition to economic and trade links.

 

“France is also trying to support an EU-Pakistan dialogue, but she (Zernini) said Pakistan makes it difficult by rejecting conditionality and attempting to focus exclusively on economic issues. Zernini said the Pakistani government is eager for trade concessions, but does not want any political dialogue unless it is focused on Kashmir.”