Kashmir is still core issue: foreign office

Kashmir is still core issue between Pakistan and India and progress on the settlement of this dispute would facilitate normalisation of both countries' relations, Foreign Office spokesperson Tasneem Aslam said here on Monday.
In Foreign Office weekly press briefing, she said: "Kashmir is an internationally accepted dispute and Pakistan and India have discussed various ideas including demilitarisation of the disputed territory at various levels and we do hope some progress on this dispute."
She said that Kashmir issue was discussed in detail during Indian External Minister Pranab Mukherjee's meetings with President General Pervez Musharraf, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz and Foreign Minister Khurshid M. Kasuri.
She said that Pakistan welcomed forthcoming visit of the All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) delegation to Pakistan, which had extended full support to Pakistan's proposals to find a solution of the Kashmir problem.
Tasneem made it clear that Pakistan would not tolerate any attempt of pre-emptive strike on its territory by any other country under any pretext. "Pakistan and India now have a Joint Anti-terrorism Mechanism and a meeting set for March 2007 to discuss the incidents of terrorism in the two countries" she added.
If India had any credible evidence that any group from Pakistan was involved in an act of terrorism in its areas, it should present it to the Joint Anti-terrorism Mechanism, she said and assured Pakistan would investigate and take action.
"But threat of pre-emptive strike is unacceptable to Pakistan" she strongly clarified.
Under the UN Charter and UN Security Council resolutions there is a distinction between the freedom struggle and acts of terrorism, the spokesperson pointed out.
"The United Nations acknowledges the validity and legality of the right of self determination and many countries of Asia and Africa got independence by freedom struggle," she reminded.
She said that the United Nations recognises the right of determination of the Kashmiri people.
Pakistan always condemns acts of terrorism in which innocent people are targeted whether by the state, a group or individuals, she reiterated.
RETURN OF AFGHAN REFUGEES:
Tasneem said that Pakistan wants return of Afghan refugees at the earliest but it would not push them into Afghanistan as it has hosted them for a long time but their resettlement and rehabilitation should be permanent and sustainable so that they should come back Pakistan again.
She called upon the international community and the United Nations to help Pakistan and Afghanistan in this gigantic humanitarian task.
She said that Pakistan is only streamlining movement on the Pak-Afghan border as it is difficult to recognise drug traffickers, criminals and terrorists among the 250,000 people who cross two ways every month. She said that a delegation of Nato would soon visit Islamabad to discuss and finalise the transit agreement.