ISLAMABAD, 26 May 2005 — US Assistant Secretary of State for South Asia Christina Rocca arrived in Islamabad for a three-day visit yesterday and held talks with Pakistani Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz.

Rocca is due to meet President Pervez Musharraf today and will also hold talks with Foreign Minister Khurshid Mahmoud Kasuri.

She is also expected to meet with leading Islamic politician, Fazlur Rehman, who is also head of the opposition in the lower house of the Parliament.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Jalil Abbas Jilani said the talks would focus on all aspects of bilateral relations and Islamabad would also raise the issue of alleged desecration of the Holy Qur’an at Guantanamo Bay detention center in Cuba.

Roca will discuss bilateral issues, Pakistan’ role on war against terrorism and progress on Pakistan and India peace process with the Pakistani leadership.

Aziz reiterated Pakistan’s commitment to the ongoing composite dialogue with India, saying the process is “irreversible” after meeting the US assistant secretary of state. Aziz noted that progress with India on various issues will have to move in tandem with the Kashmir issue that has burdened ties for over half a century.

He welcomed the US government’s decision to sell F-16 aircraft to Pakistan, saying it will contribute toward the country’s legitimate needs. Aziz recalled Pakistan’s support of the Bonn process for Afghanistan and said his country would continue to help President Hamid Karzai’s government improve security.

Rocca lauded Pakistan’s support in the ongoing war on terror and said Washington would continue its cooperation to strengthen its security and increased economic and trade relations. She also welcomed Pakistan’s positive role in relations with India.

Rocca’s visit coincided with that of an Indian defense delegation which is in Islamabad to discuss the Siachen border dispute.

Analysts consider it a “good coincidence” and said Rocca’s presence would encourage the two nuclear-armed rivals to make progress on the border dispute surrounding the 21,000-feet high Siachen Glacier.

“The settlement on Siachen is possible as lot of ground work had been done in 1989-92 and in my view, her presence will encourage them (Indian and Pakistani negotiators) to make sort of good deal on it,” said former Foreign Secretary Tanvir Ahmed Khan.

Washington has played a major role in the rapprochement between India and Pakistan, who were on the brink of war in 2002.

Hurriyat Leaders Agree to Visit Pakistan

Indian Kashmiri separatists accepted an invitation to visit Pakistan on next week’s intra-Kashmir bus service in a step toward talks that could resolve the long-running conflict, a Kashmiri leader said yesterday.

Pakistan on Monday invited the leaders of the All-Parties Hurriyat Conference, to make their first visit to the Pakistani zone of Kashmir as part of the 16-month peace process between the South Asian rivals.

“It has been decided that a high-level Hurriyat delegation will visit Pakistan and Azad Kashmir (Pakistan-controlled) on June 2,” Mirwaiz Umar Farooq said. But a hard-line faction of the Hurriyat and two influential separatists — Shabir Shah and Yasin Malik — said they were still undecided.