TRUMP URGES INDIA AND PAKISTAN TO TAKE HEAT OUT OF KASHMIR CRISIS
▶ Western officials fear another flare-up between Islamabad and New Delhi will undermine US-Taliban peace talks about the future of Afghanistan
US President Donald Trump called the leaders of India and Pakistan, asking them to reduce tension in the latest Kashmir dispute.
Mr Trump said he telephoned Narendra Modi and Imran Khan amid fears the row between the nuclear- armed neighbours could unsettle US attempts to withdraw its troops from Afghanistan.
Mr Trump admitted that the spat over the contested territory was “a tough situation”, but said he had held “good conversations” with his “good friends”.
Ties between New Delhi and Islamabad were already strained before Mr Modi’s government this month abolished Indian- administered Kashmir’s autonomous status.
Mr Modi’s decision to revoke Article 370 of the Indian constitution was accompanied by a widespread security campaign and communications blackout.
Relations have since plummeted, with Pakistan calling the act illegal and asking the UN Security Council to intervene. Transport links and cross- border trade are suspended.
Mr Trump also asked Mr Khan to tone down his rhetoric, the White House said.
“The president reaffirmed the need to avoid escalation of the situation and urged restraint on both sides,” according to a US statement.
While Pakistan has shied away from a military response to the Indian government’s actions, Mr Khan issued dire warnings about Indian abuses.
At the weekend Mr Khan likened Mr Modi’s government to the Nazis and accused New Delhi of planning ethnic cleansing and massacres in Kashmir to change the demographic balance of India’s only Muslim-majority state.
Mr Khan also claimed that India’s nuclear weapons are now in the hands of what he described a “Hindu-supremacist” government.
Mr Trump first offered to mediate in the Kashmir dispute when Mr Khan visited Washington to strengthen ties last month.
For years Pakistan has sought international intervention to resolve the conflict, but New Delhi insists the neighbours must sort the problem out between themselves.
“This is what US presidents do and have often done when things heat up on the Kashmir front: they advise India and Pakistan to work things out,” said Michael Kugelman, deputy director of the Asia Programme at the Wilson Centre think tank in Washington.
“That said, given recent developments, this tweet makes for good optics for Islamabad,” he said.
Help from Pakistan and India is regarded as critical for Washington to forge any lasting political settlement in Afghanistan as Mr Trump tries to disentangle his military from America’s longest war.
Mr Trump flattered and courted Mr Khan and Pakistan’s military chiefs during his visit last month, seeking Pakistan’s influence over the Taliban to finalise a deal.
Military paranoia about its far larger neighbour, and fears that India was courting the Kabul government, led Pakistan to sponsor the Taliban as a proxy.
Although western officials say Pakistan has so far played along with Mr Trump’s attempts to reach a settlement with the Taliban, they fear another flare-up between Islamabad and New Delhi would lead to Pakistan again backing the militants to take over the country.
The Taliban last week issued a statement urging Pakistan and India not to link Kashmir with peace in Afghanistan.
Washington confirmed that Mr Trump and Mr Modi spoke during their call about how to increase trade.
US and Indian trade negotiators ended talks in July, reportedly without resolving disputes over tariffs and other protectionist measures imposed by both sides.
The two countries resumed trade talks after Mr Trump and Mr Modi met on the sidelines of the G20 summit in June and agreed to seek ways to deepen the two countries’ relationship.
Trade was also discussed with Mr Khan. He is desperate for foreign income as the prime minister struggles to navigate Pakistan’s economy during a balance of payments crisis and rapidly rising inflation.
A $6 billion (Dh22.03bn) bailout secured from the International Monetary Fund this year came with painful tax increases and subsidy cuts that risk undermining Mr Khan’s political popularity.