Why India will not give a peace talk a chance with Pakistan as US bats for constructive talks

India-Pakistan ties deteriorated after India in August 2019 announced the withdrawal of Jammu and Kashmir's special powers.

The US supports "constructive dialogue" between India and Pakistan to resolve long-standing disputes, the Biden Administration on Thursday said.

In a US State Department press briefing, spokesperson Ned Price said, "We support constructive dialogue. We support diplomacy between India and Pakistan to resolve long-standing disputes. We are a partner, and we are willing to support that process in any way that they deem appropriate.

However, he stated that the decision is to be made by India and Pakistan themselves. "But ultimately these are decisions that India and Pakistan themselves are going to have to make...It is not for the United States to determine the modalities or the way in which India and Pakistan engage one another, said the US State Department spokesperson.

"Analysts believe that the United States has the power and authority to mediate between the two partners. Pakistan and India are partners of yours, so why don't you just mediate?" he was asked.

"Ultimately, it is not for the United States to determine the modalities or the way in which India and Pakistan engage one another. What we support is constructive dialogue, meaningful diplomacy between India and Pakistan, in the first instance to resolve longstanding conflicts," Price said.

The United States, he said, supports constructive dialogue. "We support diplomacy between India and Pakistan to resolve, again, another set of longstanding disputes. We are a partner. We are willing to support that process in any way that they deem appropriate. But ultimately, these are decisions that India and Pakistan themselves are going to have to make," he said.

The ties between India and Pakistan came under severe strain after India's warplanes pounded a Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) terrorist training camp in Pakistan's Balakot in February 2019 in response to the Pulwama terror attack.

The relations further deteriorated after India in August 2019 announced the withdrawal of Jammu and Kashmir's special powers and the bifurcation of the erstwhile state into Union Territories.

The statement from the US comes a month after Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said in an interview with UAE-based Al Arabiya news channel said that Pakistan has learnt its lesson after three wars with India and now wants to live in peace with India, provided "we are able to resolve our genuine problems". "My message to the Indian leadership and Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) is that let's sit down at the table and have serious and sincere talks to resolve our burning issues like Kashmir, where flagrant violations of human rights are taking place day in and day out," Sharif said. Later, the Pakistan's Prime Minister's Office said negotiations are not possible without India revoking its 2019 actions on Kashmir.

Why it is not possible?

India, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, had shown interest to have a cordial relationship with Pakistan after he came to power for the first time in 2014 and he made surprise visit to Lahore in 2015 to meet the then PM of Pakistan Nawaz Sharif.

Despite India indicating that it wanted peace with its neighbour, Pakistan did not show any signs of changing and the Uri and Pulwama attacks were clear example of how it cannot be trusted.

As Balbir Punj, former Member of Parliament and a Columnist, rightly described, Pakistan's hostility against India goes far beyond the Kashmir issue. In fact, their ties are tense not because of Kashmir, it's the other way around. There's something fundamentally wrong between their relations, hence the Kashmir issue has been hanging fire for over the last seven decades.

Since its troubled birth in 1947, Pakistan has been blowing hot and cold against India - depending on its domestic conditions and exigencies of global scenario. The fact is the core of Pakistan sees residual India as a part of its unfinished agenda of Islamising the entire sub-continent. Khar may be blaming Modi for the current tense relations of her country with India and nostalgically recalling the "happy times" during Atalji's and Dr. Manmohan's tenure. But her entire stance is a big farce, completely divorced from facts.

On the other hand, India is firm on its stand that it will not have peace talks with Pakistan till it shuns terrorism. Further, the current political and economic crisis in Pakistan make it an unfavourable condition for any peace talk at this stage.