India must punish killers of Pak Rangers

ISLAMABAD: Foreign Office Spokeswoman Tasnim Aslam on Thursday demanded India punish the killers of the Pakistan Rangers personnel. “India continues to escalate the situation and violate understandings and agreements at the Line of Control and Working Boundary,” she said.
The two countries exchanged lists of their respective nuclear installations and facilities in accordance with Article-II of the Agreement on Prohibition of Attacks against Nuclear Installations and Facilities between Pakistan and India of 31 December 1988.
Thursday also saw the two governments exchange lists of prisoners in each other’s custody. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs handed over a list of 526 Indian prisoners (50 civil + 476 fishermen) in Pakistan to the High Commission of India in Islamabad. A similar list of Pakistani prisoners lodged in Indian jails was also handed over to the High Commission for Pakistan in New Delhi.
The FO spokesperson sent a reminder to New Delhi regarding the Samjhota Express terrorist attack in which 50 Pakistanis were killed. “The investigations and the confession of the mastermind of the attack, Swami Aseemanad pointed to the involvement of Indian military officers and some organisations linked to major political parties. Yet, Aseemanad was granted bail on 28th August 2014,” she said.
Pakistan says it is disappointed that the Samjhota Express terrorist attack, which happened more than two years before the Mumbai attack, has not seen India sharing investigations despite assurances at the highest level. “We do not draw comparisons and do not take a similar approach. The Mumbai case is being pursued vigorously by prosecution,” she said.
She also announced the visit of US Secretary of State John Kerry to Pakistan this month for the Pakistan-US Strategic Dialogue. “The arrangements are being finalised. The visit date and other details will be shared in due course of time,” FO Spokesperson Tasnim Aslam said at the weekly media briefing.
Some reports from Washington speak of Kerry being in Pakistan around January 26, a time when US President Barrack Obama will be chief guest at India’s Republic Day.Senior US official Jarrett Blanc, who serves as Principal Deputy Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, said, “We expect that this dialogue and cooperation will continue and increase, well beyond the transition in Afghanistan. We also recognise that our engagement with Pakistan is critical to advancing our regional objectives.”
Earlier, Finance Minister Isaq Dar, in a meeting with American Ambassador Richard Olson, discussed details of Kerry’s visit.Kerry’s visit comes in the wake of a US grant of $532 million aid package under the civilian assistance package of the Kerry Lugar Act of 2010, which expired in September this year.
Olson said the fund would be given for energy, counter-terrorism, economic growth, community building, education and healthAlso, Blanc had pointed out, “Our policy of sustained engagement to date has yielded tangible incremental results. A stable, prosperous Pakistan that plays a constructive role in the region is in both our countries’ interests and has an acute effect on the region.”
Responding to a query on troops drawdown in Afghanistan, the spokesperson said that Pakistan had consistently supported a responsible troop drawdown in Afghanistan. “A new ‘Resolute Support Mission’ has commenced with focus on ‘train, advise and assist’ the Afghan defence and security forces. The Afghan Security Forces have assumed full responsibility for security across the country. We hope that these transitions are completed in orderly and successful manner. As we have always emphasized, a peaceful and stable Afghanistan remains vitally important for Pakistan and the region, Pakistan has and will continue to play a positive and constructive role in this regard,” she said.
As Pakistan gears up to execute its new anti-terror policy, the FO spokesperson agreed that there was a foreign policy aspect to this.“Obviously, there are certain aspects of this strategy that have dimensions extending beyond Pakistan; hence, the role of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Our domestic counter-terrorism measures are in consonance with the legal structure or edifice that United Nations has created over the last decade or so. For instance, proscribing individuals and entities, freezing their accounts, taking measures against terrorist financing, etc. We are strengthening cooperation and coordination with Afghanistan and also with the US and Nato in Afghanistan,” she explained.
APP adds: Replying to a question about case of Mumbai attack’s main accused, Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, the FO spokesperson regretted that an unnecessary hype had been created on a sub-judice matter. She said the case was progressing well but the media trial would not serve any purpose.