Johan Simith
Srinagar- Oct 6: Former Pakistan Pervez Musharraf has admitted that his country had trained underground Kashmiri freedom fighter groups to fight Indian rule in Kashmir.
"They (underground militant groups to fight against India in disputed state of Jammu and Kashmir) were indeed formed," Musharraf told German magazine Der Spiegel in an interview.
Asked why did Pakistan train militant underground groups to fight India in Kashmir, the former President said Nawaz Sharif’s apathy to the Kashmir issue was one of the reasons, so was the fact that the world had turned a blind eye to the dispute.
"Yes, it is the right of any country to promote its own interests... When India is not prepared to discuss Kashmir at the United Nations and is not prepared to resolve the dispute in a peaceful manner," Musharraf claimed adding, “Nawaz Sharif Government turned a blind eye because they wanted India to discuss Kashmir”.
The former Pakistan president indicated he had no regrets for the Kargil intrusion that led to an armed conflict with India in 1999 and argued that each country had a right to promote its national interest.
He slammed the international community, particularly the West, for persistently ignoring the Kashmir issue, and for singling out Pakistan for all blames.
"The West was ignoring the resolution of the Kashmir issue, which is the core issue of Pakistan. We expected the West—especially the United States and important countries like Germany—to resolve the Kashmir issue. Has Germany done that?" the former Pakistan military ruler asked.
"The West blames Pakistan for everything. Nobody asks the Indian prime minister, why did you arm your country with a nuclear weapon? Why are you killing innocent civilians in Kashmir? Nobody was bothered that Pakistan got split in 1971 because of India’s military backing for Bangladesh. The United States and Germany gave statements, but they didn’t mean anything," he said.
Musharraf charged the international community of courting India for strategic deals, while treating Pakistan as a rogue state.
"Everybody is interested in strategic deals with India, but Pakistan is always seen as the rogue," Musharraf said.
The former Pakistan ruler also said the worst blunder of the US would be to quit in Afghanistan without winning. "Then militancy will prevail not only in Pakistan, India and Kashmir, but perhaps also in Europe, the United Kingdom and in the United States. That’s my belief," he said.
Srinagar- Oct 6: Former Pakistan Pervez Musharraf has admitted that his country had trained underground Kashmiri freedom fighter groups to fight Indian rule in Kashmir.
"They (underground militant groups to fight against India in disputed state of Jammu and Kashmir) were indeed formed," Musharraf told German magazine Der Spiegel in an interview.
Asked why did Pakistan train militant underground groups to fight India in Kashmir, the former President said Nawaz Sharif’s apathy to the Kashmir issue was one of the reasons, so was the fact that the world had turned a blind eye to the dispute.
"Yes, it is the right of any country to promote its own interests... When India is not prepared to discuss Kashmir at the United Nations and is not prepared to resolve the dispute in a peaceful manner," Musharraf claimed adding, “Nawaz Sharif Government turned a blind eye because they wanted India to discuss Kashmir”.
The former Pakistan president indicated he had no regrets for the Kargil intrusion that led to an armed conflict with India in 1999 and argued that each country had a right to promote its national interest.
He slammed the international community, particularly the West, for persistently ignoring the Kashmir issue, and for singling out Pakistan for all blames.
"The West was ignoring the resolution of the Kashmir issue, which is the core issue of Pakistan. We expected the West—especially the United States and important countries like Germany—to resolve the Kashmir issue. Has Germany done that?" the former Pakistan military ruler asked.
"The West blames Pakistan for everything. Nobody asks the Indian prime minister, why did you arm your country with a nuclear weapon? Why are you killing innocent civilians in Kashmir? Nobody was bothered that Pakistan got split in 1971 because of India’s military backing for Bangladesh. The United States and Germany gave statements, but they didn’t mean anything," he said.
Musharraf charged the international community of courting India for strategic deals, while treating Pakistan as a rogue state.
"Everybody is interested in strategic deals with India, but Pakistan is always seen as the rogue," Musharraf said.
The former Pakistan ruler also said the worst blunder of the US would be to quit in Afghanistan without winning. "Then militancy will prevail not only in Pakistan, India and Kashmir, but perhaps also in Europe, the United Kingdom and in the United States. That’s my belief," he said.
