WASHINGTON, June 3: India and Pakistan may be making peace moves in Kashmir, but in the US Congress they are engaged in a fierce battle for influence.
The latest dispute revolves around a resolution adopted by the House International Relations Committee on May 7, a day before US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage’s key visit to the Subcontinent to push for peace.
The resolution, authored by Eni Faleomavaega, a ranking member of the House Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific, requires the Bush administration to disclose to Congress the extent to which Pakistan is fulfilling its pledge to permanently halt cross-border attacks, shut down “terrorist camps” in Azad Kashmir and eschew proliferation of nuclear weapons.
The Indian lobby is now trying to get it approved by the full House and also to get a similar resolution adopted by the Senate so that it can become a law.
The Pakistani lobby is obviously using its influence to block it.
Adopted unanimously, the resolution was touted as a major victory for India by the Indian lobby on the Hill.
Pakistan played it down. Instead, Pakistani diplomats and their supporters patted themselves on the back for narrowly escaping a congressional amendment that could have prevented the Bush administration from giving it financial assistance.
The amendment proposed by Congressman Gary Ackerman — a Democrat from New York — called for an end to US assistance until Pakistan stopped cross-border attacks in Kashmir and gave up weapons of mass destruction.
It proposed attaching some “over-riders” to an annual presidential waiver, which allows Pakistan to receive US assistance despite restrictions.
Mr. Ackerman however withdrew the proposed amendment after he was persuaded that it did not serve US interests in fighting terrorism and promoting peace between India and Pakistan.
Meanwhile, the Pakistan Embassy and its lobby on the Hill says that Mr. Faleomavaega’s resolution will not affect US assistance to Pakistan as it does not propose any restriction and is not time-specific.
The Indians disagree. They point out that since the adoption of the resolution, Pakistan has been working hard on Mr Faleomavaega to soften his stance. Foreign Minister Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri made it a point to call on him on
May 18.
