Obama asks Pak to release diplomat Raymond Davis

Obama conveyed the message to Pakistan at a news conference and his insistence on the release of the US embassy employee comes as he dispatched influential Senator John Kerry as a high-profile envoy apparently to tell Pakistan that it has much to lose if the controversy drags on.

“With respect to Mr Davis,our diplomat in Pakistan,we’ve got a very simple principle here that every country in the world that is party to the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations has upheld in the past and should uphold in the future,” Obama said.

“If our diplomats are in another country,then they are not subject to that country’s local prosecution. We respect it with respect to diplomats who are here. We expect Pakistan as a signatory should recognise Mr Davis as a diplomat,will abide by the same convention,” Obama said in response to a question.

Obama,however,refrained from giving details of the Administration’s specific conversation with the Pakistani government but said he is very firm about the release of the diplomat.

Davis was arrested in Lahore on January 27 after he shot down in a Lahore market two Pakistani men,who he said were trying to rob him. The US has been demanding the immediate release of Davis arguing that he enjoys diplomatic immunity,which has been denied by Pakistan.

Kerry,the White House envoy,has reached out to Pakistan tendering apology for the killing of two civilians and acknowledging that such deaths have to be probed.

The American senator has told the Pakistani officials that Davis’s conduct would be looked into by the US Justice Department,once he returns after release.

“The reason this is an important principle as if it starts being fair game on our ambassadors around the world,including in dangerous places where we may have differences with those governments,and our ambassadors or our various embassy personnel are having to deliver tough messages to countries where we disagree with them on X,Y,Z,and they start being vulnerable to prosecution locally,that’s untenable. It means they can’t do their job,” Obama said when asked why US is pushing too much on Pakistan which has a weak government right now.

“We respect these conventions and every country should as well. So we’re going to be continuing to work with the Pakistani government to get this person released,” he said.

Noting that “a couple of Pakistanis were killed in a incident between Davis in Pakistan” Obama said: “Obviously,we’re concerned about the loss of life. We’re not callous about that. But there’s a broader principle at stake that I think we have to uphold.”

The United Sates over the weekend announced to postpone the tri-lateral meeting involving Pakistan and Afghanistan scheduled later this month. The US is now going ahead with its meeting with Afghanistan from February 23 to 25.