archive: Albright condemns J&K massacres
Albright condemns J&K massacres
C K Arora in Washington
Rediff on Net
July 21, 1999
Title: Albright condemns J&K massacres
Author: C K Arora in Washington
Publication: Rediff on Net
Date: July 21, 1999
US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright has taken a serious note of
the killing of 15 civilians by militants in Doda district of Jammu and
Kashmir. ''We condemn attacks against civilians and, obviously, those
who perpetrate them and those who give assistance to the
perpetrators,'' she said.
Replying to a question during her media conference in Washington, she
said, ''Acts of terrorism must stop immediately because such actions
make the Kashmir conflict more not less difficult to resolve.''
''We hope very much that India and Pakistan will resume their dialogue
under the Lahore process. And that is, frankly, what I am going to be
talking to Jaswant Singh,'' she said when asked as to what would be
the agenda of their meeting in Singapore next week.
''He is someone that I've known for a long time and that has really
been very important in the dialogue that we had on the nuclear issues,
as well as on the Lahore process. So I'm looking forward to seeing him
in Singapore and being able to continue our discussion,'' she said.
At the outset, she said, ''Well, first of all, let me say that
obviously we have taken a great deal of interest in the whole issue of
what is happening in the various disputes between India and
Pakistan.''
In this context, she referred to the July 4 meeting that US President
Bill Clinton had with Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharief at which
the latter agreed to pull out his forces from Indian territory.
She said everybody would readily agree with the important role that
President Clinton had played in terms of moving the process forward.
In reply to another question, she said, ''Both Pakistani and Indian
officials have made conflicting claims about the fighting on the
Siachen glacier and along the Line of Control. And I think that the
Pakistanis say that they repulsed two Indian attacks, and India says
that the fighting never occurred. We can't verify either claim, but we
do know that violent incidents have in fact been taking place
regularly.''
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