Ex-Pentagon official calls on Obama to broaden engagement with South Asia

Washington, Dec.14 (ANI): Former US Assistant Secretary of Defence Lawrence J Korb has called on President-elect Barack Obama to broaden his engagement with countries in South Asia.

Currently associated with a major think tank with close links to Obama, Korb said that the incoming Obama administration must recognize the regional nature of the country's challenges and support the country in stabilising its economy.

He urged the incoming administration to work with Congress and the international community to help Pakistan weaken al-Qaeda, the Taliban and affiliated militant groups so they no longer threaten stability in the region, the United States or the world and secure borders between Pakistan and its neighbours.

"The US and its allies should work to resolve all border disputes, including those of Kashmir and the Durand Line," The News quoted Korb, a senior fellow at the Centre for American Progress, as saying.

The Obama administration must work with Pakistan, its friends and neighbours to create a new strategy for enhancing security in Pakistan, he said, adding that this relationship has to move away from a reactive, transactional, short-term approach to a ore proactive, long-term strategy that seeks to advance stability and prosperity inside Pakistan.

"To implement these goals, the US must adopt policies that recognize regional dimension of Pakistan's security challenge. Afghanistan, India and Pakistan are inextricably linked, and US policy must be formulated accordingly," he said. (ANI)