On Pakistan-India relations, Obama fulfilled the promise he made to Manmohan last month by taking up the questions of the trial

of those implicated in the Mumbai terrorist attack, the activities of Jamaat-ud-Da ah and the case of !afi" #aeed$ In his statement after the meeting, the %# president also spoke about the &e'port( of terrorism from Pakistan to other countries$ In response, )a a" told Obama that the issue of terrorism is of as much concern to Pakistan as to India if not more$ !e could also have reminded the %# president that the trial in India of the perpetrators of the #am*hauta +'press bombing, hich took place ,months before Mumbai, has been proceeding at a suspiciously leisurely pace and has also not been concluded as yet, even though the crime as committed in India and all the itnesses are ithin the country$ Obama as full of praise for )a a".s commitment to reduce tensions ith India, describing it as &a very ise path( and in this conte't mentioned the Pakistan prime minister.s meeting ith his Indian counterpart last month$ /he main tangible achievement of that meeting as an agreement to restore peace and tranquillity on the 0o1$ 2ut since then, there have been fresh incidents of 0o1 violation$ )a a" asked the %# to use its influence to encourage Pakistan-India dialogue to resolve outstanding issues and on 0o1 violations$ 3ashington predictably reaffirmed its position that hile it is prepared to use its influence to encourage improvement in Pakistan-India relations, it ill not play a direct role$ 4 day before )a a".s visit, the Obama government also reaffirmed its stance on 5ashmir, saying that it is for Pakistan and India to determine the &pace, scope and character of their dialogue( on the issue$ )evertheless, )a a" did ell to bring up 5ashmir in his meeting ith Obama$ !is call for a %# role in resolving the dispute is, ho ever, another matter$ 0ike his obsession ith &picking up the threads of dialogue ith India from here he left off in ,---(, )a a".s repeated appeals for a %# role in settling the 5ashmir issue is a hangover from his last term of office$ )ot only is 3ashington no completely dismissive of the idea, any %# involvement, in the highly unlikely event that it takes place, is likely to go in India.s favour$ )a a" should, 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 5ashmiris in international fora, as Pakistan used to do till 6778$ In his remarks after the meeting ith Obama, )a a" said that the t o leaders had discussed a &common vision( to build robust bilateral cooperation$ !e also spoke of Pakistan.s desire for a broad-based, stable and enduring partnership$ )a a".s visit sho s ho far e still are from that goal$ 2ut it served to remove some of the mistrust bet een the t o sides on ays of bringing peace and stability to

4fghanistan$ /his should help smooth the ongoing transition in 4fghanistan, a matter of vital interest to Pakistan$ 9orging a common vision for the post-67,8 period ill be an even more difficult task and may be left for the future$ /he riter is a former member of the Pakistan 9oreign #ervice$ +mail: asife"di;yahoo$com