Washington: Pakistan has asked the US to
maintain a "balance" in its relationship with Islamabad and
New Delhi, and show equal concern for the two nations.
This was conveyed to US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates
by Pakistan Army chief Ashfaq Parvez Kayani during the
former's visit to Islamabad last month, the Foreign Policy
magazine has said.
"If you care about India getting upset, care about us as
well. You have to balance the concern for India with concern
for our interests," Kayani said in a blunt message to Gates
during their meeting in Islamabad, said the author of the news
article, Imtiaz Gul.
Head of the independent Centre for Research and Security
Studies in Islamabad, Gul is the author of the Most Dangerous
Place -- Pakistan's Lawless Frontier, due out in May.
A similar message, Gul wrote, was delivered by Kayani to
the NATO leadership in Brussels recently.
"I explained to NATO leaders in Brussels that
understanding Pakistan's strategic framework would help them
understand the situation in a much better way," Kayani said.
Before his late January presentation in Brussels, Kayani
had made a similar forceful case before Gates at the Army's
headquarters in Rawalpindi.
According to Gul, Kayani at a briefing at his office in
Rawalpindi said Pakistan remains concerned about India's
Pakistan-specific military capability.
He said six of India's 13 strike corps are currently
deployed along the border and India's involvement in
Afghanistan is ongoing.
Referring to the 'Cold Start doctrine' propounded by
India and the outgoing Indian Army chief's purpurted remarks
on the "limited war" under a "nuclear overhang," Kayani said
this policy and rhetoric does alarm Pakistan's security
apparatus.
"You plan on an adversary's capability and not
intentions," Kayani explained.
"While the capability takes years to build, intentions
may change overnight and Pakistan simply cannot depend on
other's intentions, he reasoned," Gul reported.
PTI
First Published: Thursday, February 11, 2010, 23:18