Don’t want another war on Kashmir: Pak minister

Pakistan does not want another war with India over Kashmir, Defence Minister Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar has said while describing the current status of bilateral relations as the “best” the two countries ever had. “We are having a very nice relationship with India, the best of the relationship we have ever had. The confidence-building measures are working very well and I think the defence of Pakistan today is much safer than five years (ago),” Mukhtar, senior leader of the Pakistan People’s Party and one of Pakistan’s leading industrialists, said.

Ruling out the possibility of a war on the Kashmir issue, the Pakistani minister said the two countries had shown flexibility in their traditional stand on the issue. “I am sure that both the countries are showing flexibility from their traditional positions. We don’t want to fight a war,” Mukhtar told Dawn News channel.

He said the issue would be resolved only through the opening up of the borders and greater inter-mingling of Kashmiris from both sides. “Today is the time for economic wars and we also must prepare ourselves. There are other problems in Pakistan and India — food shortages, oil problem, electricity problem — and these problems can’t be solved if we are at war with each other,” he added.

Pakistan, he said, was “trying to help India” in the economic field.