The "deep historic distrust" between India and Pakistan was coming in the way of Islamabad focussing on war against terror,a top Obama Administration official has said and sought reduction in tension between the neighbours. "The only way that you are going to give the Pakistani government and armed forces the confidence to shift their focus is to address some of those areas of tension to try to reduce tension between the countries," Under Secretary of Defence for Policy,Michele A Flournoy,said at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS),a Washington-based think-tank. She also called for developing confidence-building measures between the two countries "to allow the sort of breathing space that would allow the folks on the Pakistani side to turn their attention to some of the internal challenges they face." The "deep historic distrust" between India and Pakistan,was coming in the way of the latter focusing on fighting the war against terrorism,she insisted while speaking about the Obama Administration's new Afghan-Pak policy. Flournoy,who co-chaired Afghanistan-Pakistan inter-agency policy review with US special envoy for the region Richard Holbrooke and former CIA official Bruce Riedel,was at the CSIS before joining the Obama Administration. Flournoy said the implementation of the new strategy requires mobilising not only domestic support,but also greater international political support. "The administration has been fanning out to NATO,to The Hague for a donors conference,to the European Union,to the region,to China,to the Middle East and beyond,where we're seeking to ask each of our partners to do what they can to join with us in turning this around and reaching our common goal," she said. It is important to recognise that this is not just America's war,but it is also that of the international community,Flournoy said. "Defeating Al-Qaeda,its extremist allies is a goal and a responsibility that all of us share. We also know that,as we go forward with implementing this strategy,we have to develop ways to measure progress and to hold ourselves and our partners accountable," she said. "It also means doing everything that we can to shore up a capable UN in Afghanistan and in the region. The UN is going to play a critical leadership and coordinating role on the assistance side,and we need to do everything in our power to help make them successful," she said.
