London: Seeking to link the Kashmir problem to terrorism in India, British Foreign Secretary David Miliband has said the resolution of the longstanding issue between New Delhi and Islamabad would help deny extremists in the region "one of their main calls to arms".
Writing in The Guardian, Miliband, currently on a visit to India, also asserted that those responsible for the Mumbai attacks must be brought to justice and the Pakistan government must take urgent and effective action to break up terror networks on its soil.
"...on my visit to South Asia this week, I am arguing that the best antidote to the terrorist threat in the long term is cooperation.
"Although I understand the current difficulties, resolution of the dispute over Kashmir would help deny extremists in the region one of their main calls to arms, and allow Pakistani authorities to focus more effectively on tackling the threat on their western borders," Miliband said in his article published on Thursday.
He said the terror attacks in Mumbai seven weeks ago sent shock waves around the world. "Now all eyes are fixed on the Middle East, where Israel's response to Hamas' rockets, a ferocious military campaign, has already left a thousand Gazans dead."
Under the heading which said War on Terror Was Wrong, Miliband wrote that "seven years on from 9/11 it is clear that we need to take a fundamental look at our efforts to prevent extremism and its terrible offspring, terrorist violence.
"Since 9/11, the notion of a 'war on terror' has defined the terrain. The phrase had some merit; it captured the gravity of the threats, the need for solidarity, and the need to respond urgently - where necessary, with force. But ultimately, the notion is misleading and mistaken."
India upset with Milliband: says unsolicited advice not needed
Upset at Britain's attempt to link the Kashmir issue to terrorism, India has meanwhile said it does not share London's views and does not need "unsolicited advice" on its internal issues.
"Mr (David) Miliband is entitled to his views, which are clearly his own and are evolving," External Affairs Ministry spokesman Vishnu Prakash told reporters while commenting on the remarks by the British Foreign Secretary which sought to link non-resolution of Kashmir issue to terrorism in India.
"We do not need unsolicited advice on the internal issues of India like Jammu and Kashmir," Prakash said.
He was responding to Miliband's remarks that the resolution of the longstanding issue between India and Pakistan would help deny extremists in the region "one of their main calls to arms".
"Although I understand the current difficulties, resolution of the dispute over Kashmir would help deny extremists in the region one of their main calls to arms, and allow Pakistani authorities to focus more effectively on tackling the threat on their western borders," Miliband wrote in The Guardian.
"India is a free country and even if we do not share his views, he is free to express them," the MEA spokesman said.
India has been maintaining that terrorism in this country should not be seen from the "prism" of Indo-Pak relations as it was a manifestation of a global problem.
New Delhi is also unhappy with Miliband's support to Pakistan's position that those wanted by India for terrorism need not be handed over but tried in Pakistan.
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