Pakistan warns against international support for India nuclear programme; Pakistan, Russia in talks on tackling militancy, nuclear proliferation; Obama reviews progress on Afghan conflict; Reports: Pakistan and Afghanistan have agreed to set up a joint
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    • Pakistan has warned that growing international support for rival India’s nuclear programme would force Islamabad to bolster its deterrence which would destabilise the region. In the opening session of the 2011 Conference on Disarmament, Pakistan’s Ambassador Zamir Akram sharply criticized the reported moves to bring its neighbour into the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) and other bodies that will allow trade of nuclear materials. Akram stated, “Apart from undermining the validity and sanctity of the international non-proliferation regime, these measures shall further destabilise security in South Asia.” 1

    Reports noted that Pakistan and Russia deliberated upon the ways to tackle militancy and nuclear proliferation during the talks between the two sides which was aimed at overcoming decades of distrust between the two countries. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov led the Russian delegation for a two-day dialogue in Islamabad. Reports noted that Afghanistan crisis is also expected to be discussed between both sides as the United States prepares to withdraw from the region. It would be worth noting that during the cold war, Pakistan was allied with the United States and the Soviet Union backed India. The two were bitter enemies in the 1980s when Pakistan supported Mujahideen guerrillas battling Soviet troops in Afghanistan and also during the Taliban’s rule in Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001. However, ties between the two sides have warmed since a 2003 visit by then Pakistan’s President Musharraf which was the first by a Pakistani leader in 30 years.2

    US President Barack Obama reviewed the conflict in Afghanistan and Pakistan with senior American officials serving in the region as he gears up for a landmark visit later this year. The meeting in the White House was held with President’s national security team and military, intelligence and diplomatic officials working in the region. About 100,000 US troops deployed in Afghanistan are due to gradually begin withdrawing in July this year as Afghan forces assume greater security responsibilities. Obama “got an update on the situation on the ground in Afghanistan, both from a counterterrorism perspective as well as the security situation in Afghanistan,” the White House spokesman Robert Gibbs informed.3

    Meanwhile, reports noted that Pakistan and Afghanistan have agreed to set up a joint commission for reaching out to Afghan Taliban, implying that Kabul has finally assigned a formal role to Islamabad in the reconciliation process, though it would only be the role of a facilitator. The proceedings were dubbed as ‘preparatory to the new Pak-US-Afghanistan trilateral process’, which begins next month in Washington. The joint peace commission will include diplomatic, military and intelligence representatives from both countries, plus the Deputy Chairman of the Afghan High Peace Council.4

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