WASHINGTON, 6 April 2003 — The Bush administration said Friday that India must not use the US-led pre-emptive war against Iraq as a pretext for an attack on Pakistan.
“Any attempts to draw parallels between the Iraq and Kashmir situations are wrong and are overwhelmed by the differences between them,” said State Department spokeswoman Joanne Prokopowicz.
She was responding to a comment Thursday by India’s External Affairs Minister Yashwant Sinha that India would be justified in taking pre-emptive action across the Pakistan border.
“We derive some satisfaction because I think all those people in the international community must realize that India has a much better case to go for pre-emptive action against Pakistan than the US has in Iraq,” Sinha said. India accuses Pakistan of fomenting militancy in Indian-held Kashmir, but Pakistan denies giving active aid to the militants.
Citing Iraq’s 12-year refusal to disarm in the face of UN Security Council resolutions, Prokopowicz said the circumstances that made military actions necessary in Iraq do not apply in the subcontinent and should not be considered a precedent. “The US recognizes the very serious nature of the situation in Kashmir,” she said. “Our joint statement last week with the United Kingdom made clear our repugnance of the killings of innocents that have been taking place in Kashmir with alarming frequency.”
Pakistan and India have fought three wars since they gained independence from Britain in 1947. Two were over the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir, which is split between them.
