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Powell to urge India, Pakistan to break the ice

United States Secretary of State Colin Powell will try to reinitiate dialogue between India and Pakistan and address issues between them, including Kashmir, during his forthcoming visit to the subcontinent, state department spokesman Richard Boucher has said.

"We look forward to discussing and developing important bilateral relationships and we want to work with them (India and Pakistan) on how to develop dialogue between them so that they can address the issues between them, including Kashmir," Boucher said in Washington on Wednesday.

"We expect to continue our efforts to reduce tensions between them," he added.

Powell, on a tour of Southeast Asia, will arrive first in New Delhi on July 27.

On his third visit to India since October last, Powell will hold talks with External Affairs Minister Yashwant Sinha before leaving for Islamabad on July 28.

Meanwhile, two leading Congressmen, Republican Benjamin Gilman, chairman of South Asia relations committee and Democratic Congressman Gary Ackerman urged Powell to press Pakistan President Musharraf to implement his commitments to end cross-border terrorism 'permanently and in a manner visible to India'.

"You had urged President Musharraf to halt infiltration of terrorists in a manner permanent and visible to India. We are confident that you will reiterate that sentiment," the two Congressmen said in a joint letter to Powell.

They requested Powell to ensure that Musharraf keeps his 'commitment to abandon terrorism, which he has made to our government, to the international community and to the Pakistani people'.

Attacking Musharraf for terming terrorist attacks in Kashmir as 'freedom struggle', they questioned the logic behind the US praising his anti-terrorism steps even when Pakistan was providing 'moral, political and diplomatic support' to militancy in Kashmir.

The letter also expressed concern at a slew of constitutional amendments being brought about by Musharraf terming them 'inconsistent with the establishment of true democracy in Pakistan'.

Terrorism Strikes in Jammu and Kashmir: The complete coverage

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