India welcomes Pakistan pledge to fight militants, but still talks tough

Obama and Sharif called on Taliban leaders to enter into direct talks with Kabul and work toward a sustainable peace settlement, according to a White House released on Thursday.

Ignoring the unrestrained expansion of its nuclear arsenal, its quest of tactical nuclear weapons which it openly threatens to use against India, its dismissal, on the eve of Nawaz Sharif’s visit to Washington, of any possibility of accepting any restrictions on its nuclear programme, Obama gave approval chits to Pakistan in the joint statement on its nuclear conduct by welcoming its “constructive engagement” with the Nuclear Security Summit process, its cooperation with the global Atomic Energy Agency, and its efforts to improve its strategic trade controls and enhance its engagement with multilateral export control regimes.

“We are encouraging Islamabad to take action against the Taliban, including the Haqqani Network, inside Pakistan as a means to support the peace talks”.

“Enrolling most of the terrorists into the USA army would drastically reduce the ability of terrorists to attack the U.S. army in Afghanistan, ” tweeted Secretary of State John Kerry.

In a 90-minute meeting at the White House, Obama and Sharif also committed to continue bilateral counterterrorism cooperation.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Saturday arrived in London after winding up his four-day official visit to the United States (US), ARY News reported. All that Pakistan needs to do is make sure that its soil is not used by terrorists or any other extremist group.

Rebuffed by the Obama administration on its effort to seek USA intervention on Kashmir, Pakistan has said that it has never made such a “demand” and just presented its wish list to Americans on the issue.

“Beyond that, they need to share information, share cooperation”, Toner said.

“Sharif in his address to the United Nations General Assembly said that since the bilateral process is not working, the worldwide community should take note of the increasing tension between the two countries and increased firing on the Line of Control”.

Sharif attended Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s inauguration in May and said he had hoped to start a broader discussion but had been rebuffed. “But ultimately, it’s up to those two countries to chart a way forward that addresses each of their concerns. And when India got this particular deal, it was on the basis of our own impeccable non-proliferation track record”, MEA spokesperson Vikas Swarup had said. Calling the India-Pakistan relationship a “most hard and urgent challenge”, Sharif also pleaded for greater attention from Washington to Pakistan’s “views and interests”.