The incoming Obama administration should stay away from any high-visibility focus on the Kashmir issue as it would likely evoke Indian resistance and risk fuelling Pakistani expectations of a settlement favouring Islamabad,a Congressional report has warned. The report,prepared by the Congressional Research Service for American lawmakers,said the fallout from the Mumbai terror attacks,being perceived as India's 9/11,could further complicate America's South Asia policy. The 19-page report titled 'Terrorist Attacks in Mumbai,India and Implications for US Interests',prepared mid-December for the US lawmakers - the 111th Congress in particular,was released on Wednesday and a copy was obtained by PTI. In seeking to revamp US South Asia policy,President-elect Barack Obama and his advisors may face a key central question: Are conflictual relations between the region's two largest states primarily an India-Pakistan problem or are they mainly a Pakistan problem alone,it said. Any high-visibility US government focus on the Kashmir issue would risk fuelling Pakistani expectations of a future settlement favouring Pakistan,thus in turn providing a motive for Islamabad to sustain pressure by ramping up support for Kashmiri separatists, it said.
