Musharraf admits Pak trained ultras

WASHINGTON, OCT 5
Former military ruler Pervez Musharraf has admitted that Pakistan had trained underground militant groups to fight in Kashmir, the first such admission by a top leader of the country.
Musharraf’s candid remarks came days after he announced his return to active politics from London where he has been living in self-imposed exile.
“They (underground militant groups to fight against India in Kashmir) were indeed formed,” Musharraf told German magazine Der Spiegel in an interview.
Asked why did Pakistan train militant underground groups to fight India in Kashmir, the former president said Nawaz Sharif’s apathy to the Kashmir issue was one of the reasons, so was the fact that the world had turned a blind eye to the dispute.
“Yes, it is the right of any country to promote its own interests… when India is not prepared to discuss Kashmir at the United Nations and is not prepared to resolve the
dispute in a peaceful manner,” Musharraf claimed.
“The (Nawaz Sharif) government turned a blind eye because they wanted India to discuss Kashmir,” he said.
Musharraf indicated he had no regrets for the Kargil intrusion, that led to an armed conflict in 1999, and argued that each country had a right to promote its national interest.
Musharraf slammed the international community, particularly the West, for persistently ignoring the Kashmir issue, and for singling out Pak for all blames.
Musharraf charged the international community of courting India for strategic deals, while treating Pakistan as a rogue state.
“Everybody is interested in strategic deals with India, but Pakistan is always seen as the rogue,” Musharraf said.