US denies twisting India’s arm on dialogue with Pak

US under secretary for political affairs William Burns may be pushing hard for India and Pakistan to resume talks, but at a news conference after meeting prime minister Manmohan Singh, he hinted that there was no arm-twisting from Washington.

“The US always welcomes a dialogue between India and Pakistan, but the place, scope and character of the dialogue will be decided by the two countries," Burns said on Thursday. He reminded reporters that PM Singh himself had said in parliament that he was keen to talk, so long as Pakistan cooperated with India in  terror investigations and cracked down on terror groups operating against India from its territory.

Burns said he had a “positive meeting with the PM”. He said he had handed over a letter from US president Barack Obama to Singh. While refusing to disclose the contents of the letter, he said it was consistent with Obama’s commitment for “broader and deeper relations with India and the desire to take this relationship to the next phase".

Earlier, making a brief opening statement, Burns repeated what he said on Wednesday about the significance that the US attachés to relations with India. “The US views India as a key global partner in the 21st century."

On Kashmir, he said it had to be resolved through dialogue, taking into account the wishes of the people living there. He sounded like what Pakistan has  been saying all along.

Asked about American assessment of Pakistan’s role in 26/11, Burns said he understood the depth of concern in India as the US had also faced similar strikes. Six Americans had also been killed in the Mumbai strike. “We will continue to push hard for the Pakistan government to act firmly and bring those responsible to book,” he said.  “Washington wants Pakistan to crack down on terror infrastructure so we don’t see a repeat,” he said.

Speaking of US secretary of state Hillary Clinton’s forthcoming visit to India, Burns said it reflected the importance the US gives to India.