- Sharif assures action against Haqqani Network, Lashkar-e-Tayyaba, seeks US cooperation against Pakistani Taliban
- US wants Pakistan’s support on Afghan reconciliation, ensure nuclear safety
- Pakistan to maintain nuclear deterrence
Expressing shared commitment to advance an Afghan-owned and Afghan-led reconciliation process, US President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Thursday called on Taliban leaders to enter into direct talks with Kabul for a sustainable peace settlement.
The two leaders also voiced concern over violence along the Line of Control, which divides the disputed Kashmir region between Pakistan and India, and stressed that improvement in the two countries’ bilateral relations would greatly enhance prospects for lasting peace, stability, and prosperity in the region.
Quite significantly, the two leaders emphasized the importance of a sustained and resilient dialogue process between the two neighbors aimed at resolving all outstanding territorial and other disputes, including Kashmir, through peaceful means and working together to address mutual concerns of India and Pakistan regarding terrorism.
It may be recalled that the Joint Declaration issued after Obama and Sharif’s first meeting in 2013 made no mention of Kashmir. Thursday’s statement not only expressed concern over LoC violence, but both leaders also urged dialogue to resolve the longstanding Jammu and Kashmir dispute.
Days after reversing his plan on the US troops’ withdrawal, President Obama received Prime Minister Sharif at the White House to review the situation in the war-torn country, besides discussing a whole-range of bilateral and regional issues, including the ongoing tension between the nuclear-armed neighbors Pakistan and India.
President Obama and Prime Minister Sharif renewed their common resolve to promote peace and stability throughout the region and reaffirmed commitment to promote the dialogue process between the Afghan government and the Afghan Taliban, according to the Joint Statement.
President Obama commended Pakistan for hosting and facilitating the first public talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban in July 2015 that was disrupted after a disclosure about the death of Supreme Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar.
The US leader acknowledged the opportunity presented by Pakistan’s willingness to facilitate a reconciliation process that would help end insurgent violence in Afghanistan.
President Obama is increasingly looking towards Pakistan to help use whatever influence it has on Taliban leaders to resume the reconciliation process, after being forced to alter his much touted pledge to withdraw all American troops from Afghanistan before he leaves the White House next year.
About 10,000 troops would now stay throughout the 2016, fighting the longest war in the US history, with their number coming down to 5,500 in the following years.
As Prime Minister Sharif reaffirmed that Pakistan’s territory will not be used against any other country and noted that this is an obligation of all countries in the region, both leaders agreed that regional peace and stability required the prevention of attacks across the Pakistan-Afghanistan border.
Sharif outlined the actions that Pakistan is taking under the National Action Plan to ensure that the Taliban – including the Haqqani Network – are unable to operate from the soil of Pakistan, the joint statement said.
The leaders reaffirmed that coordinated management of the Pakistan-Afghanistan border and orderly return of Afghan refugees from Pakistan are fundamental to enhancing security.
Stressing the need of improvement in Pakistan-India bilateral relations, the two leaders expressed concern over violence along the LoC, and noted their support for confidence-building measures and effective mechanisms that are acceptable to both parties.
The leaders emphasized the importance of a sustained and resilient dialogue process between the two neighbors aimed at resolving all outstanding territorial and other disputes, including Kashmir, through peaceful means and working together to address mutual concerns of India and Pakistan regarding terrorism.
In this context, Sharif apprised Pakistan’s resolve to take effective action against United Nations-designated terrorist individuals and entities, including Lashkar-e-Tayyiba and its affiliates, as per its international commitments and obligations under UN Security Council resolutions and the Financial Action Task Force.
Hours ahead of the meeting, The New York Times said that Washington planned to bolster its vital relationship with Pakistan through a sale of new F-16 fighter jets, indicating that the Obama Administration relies greatly on Pakistan to achieve stability in Afghanistan.
The US Administration’s gesture and a series of meetings between Sharif and US cabinet members on advancing economic, trade and energy cooperation clearly reflect an improvement in the relationship, which suffered setbacks over many controversies during the height of the Afghan war, particularly the frequent use of drone strikes, Taliban’s ability to operate across the border, discovery of Osama bin Laden in an Abbottabad compound in 2011 and the US Navy SEAL raid that took out the Al-Qaeda chief.
But since then, the two countries have worked hard to improve the relationship and recent developments indicate a positive trajectory, according to Pakistan’s ambassador to the US Jalil Abbas Jilani.
From the US perspective Afghanistan is a top concern at the moment as President Obama wants to show progress before leaving office in January 2017. Just weeks ago, Obama altered the troops withdrawal plan from Afghanistan in the wake of Taliban’s surprising takeover of Kunduz city – first such setback since the US invaded the landlocked country in the aftermath of 9/11 terrorist attacks. Obama, giving up on the promise to end the wars he inherited, announced that 10,000 troops would stay in Afghanistan.
But welcoming Sharif, Obama stressed that the relationship between the two countries was not confined to security cooperation.
“The United States and Pakistan have a long-standing relationship. We work and cooperate on a whole host of issues. Not just on security matters, but also on economic and scientific and educational affairs,” Obama said at the top of the meeting.
“We’re looking forward to using this meeting as an opportunity to further deepen the relationship between the United States and Pakistan,” Obama stated in the Oval Office.
For his part, Sharif voiced agreement with the US leader, hoping “to further strengthen and solidify this relationship.”
Nuclear security is also likely to feature in the talks, as per American media reports that claim the United States is concerned about Pakistan’s development of low-yield tactical weapons. Pakistani officials have rejected the notion that Islamabad is in talks with the US on limiting its nuclear deterrence capability, and says it is meant only to ward off the threat of Indian aggression.
