Holbrooke distances Kashmir issue from Afghan trouble

WASHINGTON - Stressing that the United States would not play the role of an arbitrator between India and Pakistan to resolve issues pending between them, President Obama’s Special Envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan Richard Holbrooke, has rejected the notion that to bring stability to Afghanistan, it is also necessary to address the Kashmir issue.

Addressing a regular briefing here, Holbrooke said Afghanistan has its own issues, which should be addressed separately.

“People who have advocated that are making a proposal which I believe runs counter to stability in Afghanistan. Afghanistan must be dealt with on its merits,” The Dawn quoted Holbrooke, as saying.

He also urged both India and Pakistan to refrain from blaming each other for issues facing the region.

“I understand why everyone in Pakistan and everyone in India always focus on the other. But please, let’s not draw a conclusion for which there’s no proof,” Holbrooke said while responding to a query on a bomb attack in Kabul last week in which nine Indians were killed.

“In regard to this attack, I don’t accept the fact that this was an attack on an Indian facility like the (Indian) embassy. There were foreigners, non-Indian foreigners hurt. It was a soft target. Let’s not jump to conclusions,” he said while rejecting reports that the attack was carried out by the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), which targeted Indian civilians in particular during the attack. (ANI)