US senators urge Pak to cooperate in Uri terror attack probe

Condemning the recent terrorist attack at the army base near Uri in Jammu and Kashmir in which 19 soldiers were killed, US Senators Mark Warner and John Cornyn, co-chairs of the Senate India Caucus have called on Pakistan to cooperate fully and transparently in the investigation and prosecute any individuals within its territory that participate in the probe.

In a letter to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the duo expressed their deep condolences to the soldiers who were injured and the families of those who were killed during the attack.

'As co-chairs of the Senate India Caucus, we write to express our support for India and to strongly condemn the recent terrorist attack at the army base near Uri in Jammu and Kashmir. We would like to express our deep condolences to you, the soldiers who were injured in this heinous attack, and the families of those who were killed' Democrat

John Cornyn and Republican Mark Warner said in a letter.

Maintaining that they greatly concerned about initial indications that the perpetrators of this attack were Pakistani and that the attack emanated from Pakistan, the duo said that if true this attack would be just the latest in a series of deadly attacks in India conducted by Pakistan-based terrorist groups.

"We call on the Government of Pakistan to cooperate fully and transparently in this investigation and prosecute any individuals within its territory that participated in this horrendous attack," they said in the letter.

"Pakistan's possible involvement in this attack underscores our broader concern about Pakistan's use of terrorism as a pillar of its foreign policies toward Afghanistan and India," they added.

They pointed out that, "As many credible experts have noted, such groups as the Haqqani network, Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, Lashkar-e-Taiba, and Jaish-e-Mohammad still operate freely in Pakistan, launching attacks not only on India but also on US personnel and interests in Afghanistan."

The senators said that they will work within the Congress to pressure Pakistan to end any association with these terrorist groups targeting India, put a stop to their cross-border incursions, and take active and immediate steps to reign in homegrown terrorists.

The duo pointed out that the continued threat of terrorism that both India and the United States face highlights the critical need to ensure to continue expanding U.S.-India bilateral defense, intelligence and counterterrorism cooperation.

"We welcome the declaration of India as a major defense partner, last year's signing of and Defense Framework Agreement, and continued deepening of the Defence Technology and Trade Initiative," they said.

Also expressing their delight over the finalization of an arrangement of facilitate the sharing of terrorist screening information and the progress made by the U.S.-India Counterterrorism Joint Working Group and the Homeland Security Dialogue, the senators said that they will continue to support these and other initiatives that will increase U.S. partnership with India against terrorism.