June 2nd 2002
By Michael Richardson
A senior American official said Friday that the United States was "doing everything we can" to help defuse the crisis between India and Pakistan.
The official, Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz, said the United States was seeking the support of other countries because Washington feared that an outbreak of fighting could lead to nuclear conflict.
"The potential for miscalculation in a war between two countries with nuclear weapons is truly catastrophic," Wolfowitz said. He added, "So far at least, we haven't seen any signs that this crisis is de-escalating. Most signs point in the other direction."
Wolfowitz, speaking in an interview with several newspapers shortly before a meeting with Fernandes, the Indian defense minister, said that the Bush administration was "doing everything we can to engage every country we think can have some influence to head off that kind of catastrophe."
Wolfowitz also said that the United States supported moves to hold regular meetings of defense ministers to tackle key Asian and Pacific security problems, including terrorism and the rise of China.
As defense ministers or their representatives from more than 20 countries with interests in the Asia-Pacific region met Friday in Singapore, officials said that the need to cooperate in the fight against terrorism and to prevent the spread or use of weapons of mass destruction was driving many countries closer together to protect their common security.
Wolfowitz said that North Korea, which was not represented at the Singapore meeting, was involved in spreading weapons of mass destruction, although Pyongyang had recently indicated that it was ready to resume talks with the United States. He said that such talks would probably be held, "but I wouldn't want to name a date or say at what level."
