Salman Khurshid accuses ISI, Pakistan Army of undermining peace efforts

NEW YORK: Indian Minister for External Affairs, Salman Khurshid, Saturday alleged that Pakistan’s spymaster Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and its military were sabotaging Sharif government’s efforts to make peace with India.

His statement comes hours ahead of a meeting between both the leaders on the sidelines of United Nations General Assembly.

Speaking to Voice of America (VOA) during an interview, Khurshid said that while the Prime Minister Sharif was making the right noises, it was imperative for the civilian government of Pakistan to find a way to keep the army and the ISI under control.

"We've been told that all the government agencies are on the same page," Khurshid said, "but if they were, the things that are happening would not be happening."

Salman Khurshid was referring to the recent attacks in Indian Held Kashmir that led to the deaths of over 10 people.

The minister defended Manmohan Singh's strong criticism of Pakistan in the UN General Assembly address on Saturday morning as "legitimate grievances."

The Indian Prime Minister had blamed Pakistan for cross-border terrorism and said that "the epicenter of terrorism" is in Pakistan.

Referring to the recent violence on the Line of Control (LoC) Khurshid questioned the notion it could be the work of non-state actors without support from the ISI, adding that if Pakistan could not control non-state actors on its territory it should seek India's help.

"We expect them to handle non-state actors if they are non-state actors," Khurshid said.

He also said that India had on several occasions provided evidence of the involvement of state actors in attacks on India, including the voice samples of the control room that handled the Mumbai attacks.

"We can't go into Pakistan and pick out the guy who's voice it is, Pakistan government has to help us do it. So we're saying either give the guy to us, or take action against him.”

Khurshid, though, welcomed the mention of a "new beginning" in India-Pakistan relations by the Pakistani premier, but he also said that based on past experiences India needed to "trust but verify" that Pakistan was serious about peace.

As per media reports amongst the top issues the Indian premier will raise with his Pakistani counterpart in Sunday's meeting is Pakistan's failure to bring the planners and executioners of the Mumbai attacks to justice.

According to India, several people who should be behind bars are roaming free while the ones that are under arrest have yet to finish their trials or face punishments.

"We need some accountability, or at least the beginning of accountability, only then we can start afresh," said Khurshid.