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U.S. special envoy Holbrooke to visit India, Pakistan, Afghanistan


WASHINGTON, Feb. 4 (Xinhua) -- U.S. special envoy Richard Holbrooke will visit Pakistan, Afghanistan and India following the Munich security conference in Germany this week, said the State Department on Wednesday.

The envoy left for London on Wednesday and will travel from the British capital to Germany's Munich, where he is due to take part in the annual conference on international security policy, spokesman Robert Wood told reporters.

"Then from there he will head to Pakistan, Afghanistan and India, in that order," said Wood, adding that Holbrooke told him "in essence this is an orientation trip." "He's not carrying any messages to any of these governments from either the secretary or the president," said the spokesman.

"He's not going there to lecture, he's going there to listen. And then he will report back to the secretary and the president," added the spokesman.

Holbrooke, known well for his role in brokering the Dayton Peace Accords in 1995 to end the armed conflicts in Bosnia, was named by President Barack Obama on Jan. 22 as special envoy for Pakistan and Afghanistan.

At Holbrooke's appointment ceremony, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton specified his mission as coordination "across the entire government an effort to achieve United States' strategic goals in the region."

"It has become clear that dealing with the situation in Afghanistan requires an integrated strategy that works with both Afghanistan and Pakistan as a whole, as well as engaging NATO and other key friends, allies, and those around the world who are interested in supporting these efforts," said Clinton.

As to the motivation for Holbrooke's visit to India, Wood said the Obama administration needs to hear from New Delhi's understanding on the situation in Afghanistan.

"India is an important country in the region and has interest in Afghanistan. And he wants to hear from the Indian government interms of how we can all better contribute to peace and stability in Afghanistan," said the spokesman.

With thanks to
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-02/05/content_10764744.htm
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