April 4, 2003	Friday	Safar 1, 1424

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NEW DELHI, April 3: British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw has asked India and Pakistan to resolve the Kashmir issue by a political process even as he urged Islamabad to help curb militancy in the disputed region, Press Trust of India (PTI) quoted him on Thursday as saying.

PTI, quoting an interview Straw has given to India’s state-run Doordarshan, said Britain had voiced grave concern over the “increasing evidence” of infiltration across the Line of Control (LoC) from Pakistan.

Straw wanted to see Islamabad “encouraging” an end to all kinds of militant and terrorist operations in Jammu and Kashmir, PTI said.

“At the same time, (Straw) also sought the beginning of political process which would enable people of both sides of the LoC to live in peace and harmony,” PTI said.

In an interview to Doordarshan’s World View programme, Straw said that a recent joint statement issued on Kashmir by him and US Secretary of State Colin Powell from Camp David was prompted by “our grave concern about increasing evidence of infiltration, across LoC from Pakistan, to India”.

Straw also referred to “recent terrible atrocities” which led to massacre of many women, children and men in certain parts of Jammu and kashmir.

“So we are calling on the Pakistani government to do everything it can to stop infiltration and we want to see it encouraging an end to all kinds of militant and terrorist operations in Jammu and Kashmir whether they are operated from Indian or Pakistani side of the border.

“Along with that we want to see the beginning of a political process so that we can get into a stage where the people of both sides can live in peace and harmony,” Straw said.

Asked about the response from China on putting pressure on Pakistan to help improve ties between India and Pakistan, Straw said during a recent conversation, the Chinese foreign minister had accepted that there was “great potential” across the LoC for further escalation of violence.

The Chinese minister had assured him that Beijing would do anything to reduce this tension across the LoC, he said.

On the Iraq developments, Straw said: “The military coalition will initially fill in the vacuum left by the absence of Saddam Hussein but would swiftly pave the way for installation of a civilian government run by Iraqi people.”