As Secretary of State Hillary Clinton prepares to visit New Delhi later this month, the US says it is not looking for any “mediation” role on the Kashmir issue and wants India and Pakistan to address the matter in a way that eases tensions.

Ahead of the visit, the Obama Administration also sent another signal of its intention to develop its strategic partnership with New Delhi announcing that the White House has carved out a separate India Desk at its National Security Council (NSC).

India is only the second country after Russia to be handled separately by a Senior Director at the National Security Council in a bid to put focus on Indo-US ties, NSC spokesman Mike Hammer said. He said this is “unusual”.

On Indo-Pak issues, Hammer said, “The US is not looking for a mediation role, but rather we want India and Pakistan to be able to address these issues in a way that eases tensions, because we think it is really in benefit of both countries and also for promoting regional stability.”