Mirwaiz Umer Farooq, chairman of the moderate faction of the All Party Hurriyat Conference, has welcomed United States President Barack Obama's stance on the Kashmir dispute.
"President Obama offered help in facilitating the negotiations between India and Pakistan as the trust between the two key parties has been shattered. We, the people of Kashmir, are happy with the outcome. We have never ever called for third party mediation. But we feel that United States can help in facilitating talks between India, Pakistan and the people of Kashmir to find a solution to this problem," Mirwaiz said.
Speaking on Obama's support for India's bid for the United Nations Security Council, he said, "We are not against India getting a permanent seat in the UNSC. We welcome the growing economic and political clout of India. But President Obama also stressed upon the responsibilities (that come with such clout). You cannot sit in judgement over others when you have a problem like Kashmir yet to be resolved in your backyard," he said.
He also praised Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's statement that India is ready to talk on all issues with Pakistan including Kashmir.
"There is no point having committees and interlocutors go into the problems faced by Kashmiris. The interlocutors appointed by the government have said that they would take one year to submit their findings. It is a tactic to buy time," he said.
Mirwaiz said that it would be better if the PM takes the initiative to solve the vexed Kashmir issue. "We need a political initiative and not an investigative venture," he pointed out.
