LONDON , 6 June — Britain and the US are considering offering a military monitoring force for Kashmir in an attempt to defuse the threat of a nuclear conflict between India and Pakistan.
The troops would be used to patrol the disputed border to prevent infiltration by insurgents who have allegedly been coming from Pakistan into the Indian held part of the state to carry out attacks.
US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld will carry the proposal for a "verification force" when he visits the sub-continent next week, according to defense and diplomatic sources.
Studies by British and American officials envisage that around 500 troops will be needed for such a mission working closely with Indian and Pakistani security forces.
Washington and London believe that an international force may well be welcomed by President Gen. Pervez Musharraf, as a way to rein in elements of his army and intelligence service who are sympathetic to the fighters, and have been assisting them to carry out raids across the Line of Control between the two countries. It will also mean that Pakistanis can claim that their attempts to internationalize the Kashmir dispute has been at least partly successful. (The Independent)
