US Assistant Secretary Alice arrives in Pakistan

ISLAMABAD (92 News) – US Acting Assistant Secretary Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs Alice G Wells arrived in Islamabad on a state visit on Tuesday. According to sources, a high-level US delegation arrived in Islamabad and will hold delegation-level talks with the Pakistani leadership. Alice, with high-powered delegation, will meet political and military leadership in the federal capital to discuss the formation of US-Pak joint working mechanism and ways to promote bilateral relations. The diplomatic sources said that Alice will also take part in delegation-level talks in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Pakistan. Both sides will also discuss so far progress on Afghan reconciliation process and regional security and peace. Pakistan will convey its reservations to the senior US official about growing Indian aggression along the Line of Control (LoC) and deteriorating human rights situation in the Indian-occupied Kashmir (IoK). The US envoy visit comes a day after the Indian government had rushed through a presidential decree to abolish Article 370 of the Constitution that grants special status to Indian occupied Kashmir. A day earlier, the US State Department, in a statement issued late Monday, emphasized upon Indian government to respect human rights in the valley. The statement stated that the US is closely observing the everyday happenings in the state of Jammu and Kashmir. It urges all stakeholders to maintain peace and stability along the Line of Control (LoC). Kashmir is not India’s internal affair and that the arrests and house-arrests of Huriat leaders is a matter of great concern for the US. In its reaction in the aftermath of violence in occupied Kashmir, the US State Department said: “We take note of India’s announcement revising the constitutional status of Jammu and Kashmir and India’s plan to split the state into two union territories. “We note that the Indian government has described these actions as strictly an internal matter. We are concerned about reports of detentions and urge respect for individual rights and discussion with those in affected communities,” the statement added.