Kargil Special: Ambassador says U.S. will never interfere in Kashmir
NEW DELHI: The United States' ambassador to India, Richard Celeste, said in an interview published Saturday that Washington would never interfere in the dispute between India and Pakistan over Kashmir.
''The U.S. will never interfere (in Kashmir). Never,'' the Sunday Observer weekly quoted Celeste as saying. ''Kashmir is an issue which can be only settled by peaceful talks between the two countries, without any intervention. The U.S. realizes this,'' reports Reuters.
Celeste said Washington was keen that the conflict between Indian troops and guerrillas in Kargil and neighboring mountain zones on the Indian side of Kashmir's cease-fire line did not spill over to other regions. India Saturday pressed on with a ground offensive to flush out the guerrillas, who it says include Pakistani soldiers. Military officials said it had wrested back key parts of northern Kashmir.
Celeste said he had met Indian Home (interior) Minister Lal Krishna Advani and Defense Minister George Fernandes to discuss the situation. ''I suggested that India should get the facts on Kargil straight, ensure that the issue will not spill over, and take steps to avoid a war in the region,'' he was quoted as saying.
''We want peace to prevail in the subcontinent -- and we want both countries to have a better relationship with us.'' The United States has consistently urged the nuclear-capable neighbors to resolve their differences through talks. India and Pakistan have fought three wars since their independence from Britain in 1947, two of them over Kashmir.
Celeste said Washington had ''nothing personal against India'' but the economic sanctions it imposed on India after its nuclear tests last year were meant as a signal to others. ''The sanctions were meant to be a warning to other nations to desist from going nuclear. The move was a step toward a nuclear-free world,'' he said.
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