ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: The National Security Adviser Dr. Moeed Yusuf has said that there can be no forward movement unless India takes concrete steps to reverse the situation on the ground in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) and stops sponsorship of terrorism against Pakistan.
In his interview to prominent Indian journalist Karan Thapar on Saturday, Dr. Moeed Yusuf laid out Pakistan’s position on Kashmir, and said that the government and people of Pakistan will remain committed to the Kashmir cause till such time that the Kashmiris are granted their right to self-determination under UN Security Council resolutions.
Elaborating the offer from India to hold talks, Dr. Yusuf said that Pakistan had clearly communicated to India that it must halt demographic change in IIOJK, ensure the protection of Kashmiri identity, and give Kashmiris their rights before any dialogue or talks can take place.
The national security adviser also provided details of Indian sponsorship of terrorism against Pakistan. He said Pakistan had provided a detailed dossier with evidences on Indian involvement in terrorism inside Pakistan. He provided information on RAW involvement in the Johar Town blast in Lahore last month, saying that evidence of banking transactions, telephone records and cyber-attacks revealed direct involvement of India in the attacks.
Dr. Moeed Yusuf also said that Indian intelligence agencies were deliberately targeting China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and Chinese interests in Pakistan through their terrorist proxies.
Dr. Yusuf said that Pakistan had always stood for peace and Prime Minister Imran Khan had clearly said in Tashkent that Pakistan wanted to have a civilized relationship with India as a neighbour but the Indian government’s RSS inspired Hindutva ideology was a stumbling block. He asked why people inside India were comparing Modi to Hitler?
The adviser told the Indian journalist that Pakistan was deeply concerned about India’s rogue behavior including reports of Indian state-sponsored spying on Pakistani individuals revealed under the recent Pegasus scandal and the revelation made by the Indian Foreign Minister that the Modi government had politicized the FATF technical process to ensure Pakistan remains in the grey list despite meeting almost all technical criteria.
In response to a question on whether a window of opportunity remained for Pakistan and India to move forward, Dr. Yusuf said that Pakistan hoped that the possibility of moving forward remained if the Indian government realized its mistakes in IIOJK and took the right steps to reverse the situation on the ground to before August 5, 2019. He said that if India takes such actions and ends terrorism inside Pakistan, then both countries can work towards resolving their core issues which will benefit the common citizens of both countries.
Dr. Yusuf said Pakistan is pursuing a policy of geo-economics and this is why Pakistan wanted peace and stability in Afghanistan. He said Pakistani leadership has spent over 15000 hours in trying to convince all parties in the Afghan conflict to sit together and find a negotiated inclusive political settlement in Afghanistan for peace and stability because Pakistan did not want a protracted war in Afghanistan.
The national security adviser said that Pakistan was committed to working with all regional countries that wanted peace and stability in Afghanistan.
However, alluding to India, he said countries that were spoilers in Afghanistan and did not want peace in the country must desist from their negative actions.
Dr. Moeed Yusuf also categorically said that India has turned Afghanistan into a terrorism hub by sponsoring anti-Pakistan terrorist groups and this was unacceptable for Pakistan.
