Pakistan Army Chief, General Asim Munir’s attempt to get the US backing for Islamabad’s stand on Kashmir miserably failed with the Biden administration refusing to endorse his arguments on this “bilateral” issue.
The US officials asked the Pakistan Army brass not to discuss any issue (Jammu and Kashmir) that has to be resolved bilaterally. The US asked him to take stern and credible actions against terror actors who are still active on the soil of Pakistan and in other parts of the region, diplomats who are in touch with their US counterparts who are closely following Munir’s US visit told The Sunday Guardian.
In his first official visit to the US as Pakistan Army Chief, General Asim Munir met top US officials, including US Secretary of State Antony J Blinken and Secretary of Defence General Llyod J Austin.
In these interactions, Munir tried to raise the Kashmir issue, but he was given a cold shoulder on this, sources said, adding, “The US officials did not lend Munir a hearing when he sought to discuss the fallout of Indian Supreme Court’s verdict upholding the abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir, which is a jolt for Pakistan.”
Pakistan Army chief wanted a favourable response from Secretary Blinken on the Kashmir matter in a private conversation so that he could use it to win some brownie points, an official said.
Sources told The Sunday Guardian, “The Biden administration reiterated what US ambassador to India Eric Garcetti said recently. The US envoy had said that the Kashmir dispute must be resolved bilaterally between India and Pakistan and not through the intervention of any third party, including the US.”
That the US not only snubbed Munir on Kashmir but also asked him to act against terrorism goes to the credit of the Indian diplomatic establishment that worked hard over the past one week to build a strong narrative about a “zero tolerance” policy for terrorism, sources said.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s statement on 6 December in Rajya Sabha unveiling the Narendra Modi government’s “Zero Terror” Policy to end terror incidents in Jammu and Kashmir completely helped diplomats set the narrative against terrorism and bring focus of the international community including the US to the Pakistan sponsored menace in the region.
The Home Minister’s statement came only days ahead of Munir’s visit to the US. HM Amit Shah’s message on how the Modi government is seriously pursuing a policy to rid Jammu and Kashmir and entire region, for that matter, of terrorists being sent by Pakistan was well-received in the US administration as diplomats spared no efforts to amplify it through diplomatic communications and channels in Washington, said a source, adding, “The evidence about recent incidents of infiltration by terrorists from across Pakistan’s border was also shared with the officials in the Biden administration.”
A plan to have zero terror incidents in J&K is in force for three years and it will be successful completely by 2026. “The issue was so important that the international community through its diplomatic networks was following it closely,” said officials. “So it helped diplomats amplify the message across various platforms including in the US smoothly,” they added.
While Munir was still in the US, India’s permanent representative to the UN Ruchira Kamboj called upon the UN to exercise zero tolerance against terror groups and their sponsors (Pakistan).
This message was also for the US from the UN in what is part of India’s strategy to highlight cross border terrorism as a major issue which the global community must not lose sight of. India’s target of 2026 for the full implementation of the “Zero Terror Policy” has rattled Pakistan.
Munir’s attempt to rake up the Kashmir issue in the US was the result of frustration that Islamabad is having over this issue.
In another example showing Islamabad’s frustration, Pakistan was behind the statement from the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) which criticised the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold Parliament’s discretion to abrogate Article 370 earlier this week. India rejected the statement immediately.
In what appeared to be a veiled attack against Pakistan, New Delhi alleged that the OIC’s statement was issued at the “behest of a serial violator of human rights and an unrepentant promoter of cross-border terrorism”.
“What worries Pakistan more is that India is now eyeing PoK as it continues to be a safe haven for terror camps. Pakistan may be under the impression that India’s Zero Terror policy might include some action against PoK.