'Pakistan for 'paradigm shift' to resolve Kashmir' Friday, December 15, 2006 03:24 [IST]
Islamabad: Allaying fears that it is scaling down its stand
to reach an agreement on the Kashmir issue, Pakistan today said there was no
deviation in its policy and it was serious about a 'paradigm shift' in its
relations with India to reach an 'honourable' settlement.
"My message to the people of (South Asia) is that Pakistan is very serious about bringing a
paradigm shift (in its ties with India)," Foreign Minister Khurshid
Mehmood Kasuri said to sources.
He refuted criticism that there had been a deviation in Pakisans Kashmir
policy.
"Definitely no deviation (on Kashmir).
Why are we making proposals, we want to change the status quo. The party
wanting to change the staus quo has to make greater exertions. Indians perhaps
would be happy with status quo," he said, defending President Pervez
Musharrafs proposals to resolve the Kashmir
dispute.
Answering a question on whether Pakistan
alone was making proposals and India
has not conceded anything, he said, "If it (India) does not budge an inch, we
wont budge an inch. What have we given? Nothing.
"We will only make a compromise if there is reciprocal flexibility shown
by India.
That should not deter us from making proposals, because we are the power
interested in changing the status quo." Kasuri's comments came after
hardline religious parties accused the government of making a U-turn on the
Kashmir issue in the wake of the Foreign Office spokesperson's statement on
Monday that Pakistan had
never claimed Kashmir as an integral part of
its territory.
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