Washington,Aug 23: The United States on Thursday said that cross-border infiltration into Jammu and Kashmir has decreased but it hasn't permanently ended. Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf had assured US Secretary of State Colin Powell that support for infiltration across the Line of Control will end permanently, and since that assurance infiltration has decreased, State Department deputy spokesman Philip Reeker said here.
However, ending infiltration permanently has to have "the highest priority" for Pakistan, he said, adding "as we have said many times before, we are going to follow this closely." Again, said Reeker, Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage will be raising this issue during his forthcoming meetings in Islamabad.
On other issues, namely Musharraf's latest assumption of powers to override the authority of the elected representatives, Reeker said: "We have some concerns about some of the recent decisions that could affect the ability to have strong democratic institutions in Pakistan. Bureau Report