Barack Obama should use Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to US to push for stronger military and strategic ties between the two countries and the President is uniquely positioned to help India and Pakistan avoid the "nightmare fear of war", says a former US diplomat.

Nicholas Burns, the lead negotiator on the Indo-US nuclear deal, said Obama faces a classic diplomatic challenge in South Asia - how to balance a short-term need for progress in Afghanistan and Pakistan without losing sight of "our equally important long-term ambitions with India."

"To be fair, India is a difficult and irresolute partner on some of the issues, particularly climate. But, Obama can act more vigorously to restore the energy on India left to him by his predecessors," Burns wrote in 'Boston Globe', published today hours before the Singh-Obama meet.

US should work "more actively" behind the scenes to urge India and Pakistan to restore their Composite Dialogue, reduce bilateral tensions, and commit to progress on the Kashmir issue, he wrote.

"As the United States is now the key power broker in the region, Obama is uniquely positioned to help nuclear-armed India and Pakistan avoid the nightmare fear of war that has bedevilled their relations since Partition in 1947," he said.

Burns said Obama should push for stronger military and strategic ties between the two countries.

"India is a natural military partner of the United States given our common interest in resisting terrorism in South Asia and beyond," he wrote in the aticle 'Ways Obama can tend bonds with India'.

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