NEW DELHI: India is expecting Sartaz Aziz, the advisor to Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Foreign Affairs, to rake up the Kashmir issue during the Heart of Asia Conference in Amritsar. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has already put a pre-emptive strategy in place to counter it.
In a barely veiled reference, India and Afghanistan have been pointing fingers at Pakistan for abetting terrorism in the region.
“We have accounted for Aziz raising the issue of Kashmir on the margins of the Heart of Asia conference. That is why stemming of cross-border terrorism will be a key agenda during the conference focusing on twin topics of security and connectivity,” sources said.
Afghanistan’s Ambassador to India, Dr Shaida M Abdali, also echoed India’s statement: “Afghanistan has always stated that terrorism is a continuous threat, especially to India and Afghanistan, and of course to many others in the region.” This is the first time India is hosting the Heart of Asia conference constituted under the Istanbul process for the reconstruction of the war torn Afghanistan. The conference is being held in Amritsar, an important city on Grand Trunk Road, constructed by Sher Shah Suri which leads to Lahore and Kabul.
Aziz arrived in Amritsar on Saturday night to attend the ministerial-level conference. His is the first visit of a high-ranking Pakistani official after the terror attack on Pathankot airbase in January derailed talks between the two countries. The decibel level of Islamabad’s rhetoric on Kashmir has also gone up since July following the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani in the state.
According to sources in the MEA, the decision to not to have bilateral on the sides of the conference has also been taken to avoid the Heart of Asia conference in Pakistan getting “overshadowed” by the tension in Indo-Pak relations.
Despite Pakistan closing its borders for Afghanistan traders and refusing Indian goods intended for Kabul to transit through its territory, Islamabad could not have missed this conference as it considers and project itself as the main stakeholder in Afghanistan.