The Londoner

The problem with campaign promises, especially far-reaching ones, is that eventually they must be kept. Throughout his campaign, Barack Obama pledged to reverse what he called one of the fundamental strategic blunders of the Bush Administration by returning to, and winning the war in, Afghanistan. But when Obama takes office on Jan. 20, he will inherit a war complicated by years of neglect. Seven years on, military commanders are struggling to find a winning strategy in a fight whose cost in both blood and treasure continues to mount even as security disintegrates. Coalition soldiers are dying in greater numbers now than in any year since 2001. So are Afghan civilians — who are victims of the insurgency as well as mistaken aerial bombardments made necessary by a shortage of troops. The Bush Administration, in its assessment due in December, will recommend a doubling of the Afghan military, yet it neglects to say how that impoverished country can support an army of 160,000 or more. Form

BARACK Obama is considering sending Bill Clinton, to Kashmir to help negotiate a settlement between India and Pakistan over the disputed region. The president-elect is said to believe that a peace settlement over Kashmir holds the key to unlocking co-operation between the two South Asian neighbours in the battle against al-Qa’ida and the Taliban. Senator Obama as described Kashmir as one of the "critical tasks" for his administration, adding that he had discussed the possibility of the former US president playing a role in "redefining" relations between nuclear-armed neighbours India and Pakistan. Mr Clinton -- who once described Kashmir as "the most dangerous place in the world" and a "nuclear tinderbox" -- could be appointed a special envoy on Kashmir charged with finding a solution to a strategic problem that Senator Obama believes holds the key to the conflict in Pakistan and Afghanistan. The role would be similar to that of former British pr

Srinagar October, 2008 Jammu & Kashmir: The Self-Rule Framework for Resolution Contents: Preface Executive Summary Chapter I: The Overall Context of Resolution: i) International: Globalisation ii) National: Democracy & Conflict iii) Regional: Resistance to Representation Chapter II: Contours of Resolution: i) Demilitarisation ii) Challenges Chapter III: Framework for Resolution: Self-Rule i) New political superstructure ii) Economic Integration iii) Constitutional Restructuring Main Proposals PREFACE The Peoples Democratic Party prepares and offers this working paper on J&K as an act of hope. The hope lies in the belief that if the decision-makers and responsible political parties discern the categorical imperatives that have impelled this formulation, realize its intent and motive and examine its contents on merits, ob