India blocks Pakistan's entry to ARF

India blocks Pakistan's entry to ARF

CAMBODIA: India has blocked ASEAN's push for Pakistan to join the
Asia-Pacific's top security grouping, according to a delegate
attending the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) in Phnom Penh on
Wednesday.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) earlier in
the week agreed to lift the moratorium on ARF membership to seek
membership for Pakistan in the grouping.

But Indian Foreign Minister Yashwant Sinha told ARF ministers
and officials holding annual talks in the Cambodian capital on
Wednesday that the issue "should be tabled at a future meeting of
the ARF so that members can have a say and have a discussion
about this," the delegate said on condition of anonymity.

Pakistan had earlier Wednesday welcomed ASEAN's pledge to push
for its inclusion in the 23-member ARF, which officials had said
would boost moves against terrorism and toward resolving its
dispute with India over Kashmir. --AFP