Besides making a pledge to brief Pakistan as this process moves forward and on a longterm strategy for stability in the

region, he also expressed confidence in being able to achieve a goal that is good for Afghanistan but also helps to protect Pakistan !ome "! officials have in the past admitted grudgingly that #ndia is using Afghan soil to stir up trouble in Pakistan "! AfPak envoy $obbins, for instance, said in an interview with the BB% last August that Pakistan&s concerns over #ndia&s presence in Afghanistan were not groundless, though they were exaggerated 'e recognise, $obbins said, that there is some infiltration of hostile militants from (Afghanistan into Pakistan) But *bama&s comments on seeking an outcome in Afghanistan that protects Pakistan are perhaps the first public admission, howsoever indirect, by a "! president that Pakistan faces a threat emanating from Afghan soil that it needs to guard against +he positive tone of *bama&s remarks on Pakistan&s stakes in the peace and stability of Afghanistan and the absence of any public name-calling by "! officials during ,awa-&s visit on safe havens in Pakistan for the Afghan +aliban is in welcome contrast to their past behaviour #t would not have been possible without our support to the Afghan reconciliation and peace process that 'ashington has been trying to put in place for more than a year *n Pakistan-#ndia relations, *bama fulfilled the promise he made to .anmohan last month by taking up the /uestions of the trial of those implicated in the .umbai terrorist attack, the activities of 0amaat-ud-$awah and the case of 1afi- !aeed #n his statement after the meeting, the "! president also spoke about the export of terrorism from Pakistan to other countries #n response, ,awa- told *bama that the issue of terrorism is of as much concern to Pakistan as to #ndia if not more 1e could also have reminded the "! president that the trial in #ndia of the perpetrators of the !am2hauta 3xpress bombing, which took place 45 months before .umbai, has been proceeding at a suspiciously leisurely pace and has also not been concluded as yet, even though the crime was committed in #ndia and all the witnesses are within the country *bama was full of praise for ,awa-&s commitment to reduce tensions with #ndia, describing it as a very wise path and in this context mentioned the Pakistan prime minister&s meeting with his #ndian counterpart last month +he main tangible achievement of that meeting was an agreement to restore peace and tran/uillity on the 6o% But since then, there have been fresh incidents of 6o% violation ,awa- asked the "! to use its influence to encourage Pakistan-#ndia dialogue to resolve outstanding issues and on 6o% violations 'ashington predictably reaffirmed its position that while it is prepared to use its influence to encourage improvement in Pakistan-#ndia relations, it will not play a direct role

A day before ,awa-&s visit, the *bama government also reaffirmed its stance on 7ashmir, saying that it is for Pakistan and #ndia to determine the pace, scope and character of their dialogue on the issue ,evertheless, ,awa- did well to bring up 7ashmir in his meeting with *bama 1is call for a "! role in resolving the dispute is, however, another matter 6ike his obsession with picking up the threads of dialogue with #ndia from where he left off in 4555, ,awa-&s repeated appeals for a "! role in settling the 7ashmir issue is a hangover from his last term of office ,ot only is 'ashington now completely dismissive of the idea, any "! involvement, in the highly unlikely event that it takes place, is likely to go in #ndia&s favour ,awashould, therefore, stop harping on this proposal and instead spend his efforts and those of his government on raising the issue of the right of self-determination and other human rights of the 7ashmiris in international fora, as Pakistan used to do till 899: #n his remarks after the meeting with *bama, ,awa- said that the two leaders had discussed a common vision to build robust bilateral cooperation 1e also spoke of Pakistan&s desire for a broad-based, stable and enduring partnership ,awa-&s visit shows how far we still are from that goal But it served to remove some of the mistrust between the two sides on ways of bringing peace and stability to Afghanistan +his should help smooth the ongoing transition in Afghanistan, a matter of vital interest to Pakistan ;orging a common vision for the post-894: period will be an even more difficult task and may be left for the future +he writer is a former member of the Pakistan ;oreign !ervice 3mail< asife-di=yahoo com