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Sharief has miles to go before he keeps promise

George Iype in New Delhi

Even as Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharief returned home to a hostile reception on Thursday, Indian officials said they did not expect him to take any immediate steps to fulfil his promise to US President Bill Clinton.

Sharief's pledge to withdraw troops from Kargil seems to have fallen on deaf ears. For, Pakistani soldiers have launched one of the fiercest counterattacks on Indian soldiers in the last two days.

Indian military and diplomatic officials admitted that after the recapture of Tiger Hill, operations have intensified in Drass and Batalik sectors as Pakistan army is deploying fresh troops.

Pakistan's renewed resolve to escalate the fight despite diplomatic pressures forces the ministry of external affairs to believe that the promised withdrawal of troops will not take place soon.

"We do not expect a dramatic and immediate withdrawal at least in the next one week," an MEA official told rediff.com

He cited "Sharief's pressing problems at home" as the main reason for this. "The political leadership headed by Sharief may be willing to agree to the proposal mooted by the US. But we really do not believe the Pakistan army and militant groups would help Sharief honour his commitment," the official remarked.

The Pakistan premier is under tremendous opposition from his opponents and the army over his withdrawal deal with the US.

MEA officials said India does not expect any communication from Pakistan till Sharief convinces the top civilian and military officials in Islamabad to agree with him.

"That Pakistan is ready to withdraw troops from Indian territory is a commitment given by Prime Minister Sharief to President Clinton. India has not yet got any communication in this regard from Pakistan so far," MEA spokesperson R S Jassal said.

He stated that India has also not been in touch with the US on the issue.

"India's position is very clear. We have a task at hand to evict the armed intruders from our territory. We are in the process of flushing them out," he said, adding that Sharief's commitment is no concern for India until and unless he keeps his promise.

The spokesperson reiterated that India is not ready for any bilateral dialogue with Pakistan on the promise of withdrawal. "We will consider bilateral talks only after Operation Vijay is successfully over," he added.

While India is eagerly awaiting a response from the Pakistan prime minister, diplomatic circles are keenly watching how Sharief would take his establishment into confidence in the coming days.

Already, militant groups fighting in Kashmir have rejected the Clinton-Sharief agreement outright, criticising Sharief and even threatening US citizens in the region.

The Kargil Crisis

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