Islamabad: Allaying fears that it is scaling down its stand to reach an agreement on the Kashmir issue, Pakistan on Thursday said there was no deviation in its policy and it was serious about a "paradigm shift" in its relations with India to reach an "honourable" settlement.
"My message to the people of South Asia is that Pakistan is very serious about bringing a paradigm shift in its ties with India," Foreign Minister Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri said in an interview to PTV.
He refuted criticism that there had been a deviation in Pakistan's Kashmir policy.
"There is definitely no deviation on Kashmir. Why are we making proposals, we want to change the status quo. The party wanting to change the status quo has to make greater exertions. Indians perhaps would be happy with status quo," he said, defending President Pervez Musharrafs proposals to resolve the Kashmir dispute.
Answering a question on whether Pakistan alone was making proposals and India has not conceded anything, he said: "If it (India) does not budge an inch, we wont budge an inch. What have we given? Nothing.
"We will only make a compromise if there is reciprocal flexibility shown by India. That should not deter us from making proposals, because we are the power interested in changing the status quo."
Kasuri's comments came after hardline religious parties accused the government of making a U-turn on the Kashmir issue in the wake of the Foreign Office spokesperson's statement on Monday that Pakistan had never claimed Kashmir as an integral part of its territory.
Referring to the controversy generated by the Foreign Office spokesperson's remarks, Kasuri said "Kashmir is a disputed territory and it has been recognised by Pakistan, India and international community".
But at the same time, Pakistan is proactively trying to resolve the issue. Kasuri also spoke of Pakistan being realistic about a solution acceptable to India, Pakistan and the Kashmiris.
"We are realists and it has to be acceptable to the Kashmiris because it is their future. But as a realist if you do not want a war you negotiate a peaceful settlement and it has to be acceptable to Pakistan and India both," he said.
"Peace is a strategic choice" between India and Pakistan, he said. "We can only do what is do-able and we cannot sell a dishonourable peace to our people and we will not. The bottom line is that it has to be peace with honour, which can only be on equal terms. Hence I repeat (it) can only be based on reciprocal measures and reciprocal flexibility."
Asserting that there was "nothing wrong" in being pro-active on the issue of Kashmir, Kasuri said the cabinet and parliament would "be taken into confidence when there is something concrete".
"At the moment we are discussing and throwing various ideas at each other...There is no desire to change our stand unilaterally. It will only happen if India shows reciprocal flexibility," he said.
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