Hillary's promise: Will change US' Pak fixation

Washington: US Presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton has promised to end the US' "one dimensional" Pakistan policy focusing on President Pervez Musharraf and push for improved relations between India and Pakistan if voted to power.

"For the past seven years the Bush administration has pursued a one-dimensional policy toward Pakistan, focusing its high level attention overwhelmingly on President Musharraf to the exclusion of other important political actors in Pakistan and its civil society. It is time for this to change," Clinton, who is locked in a close race with rival Barack Obama for the Democratic presidential nomination, said.

Stressing that the Feb 18 Pakistan elections should send a signal to the United States about its policy toward the Islamic country, she has that a future Clinton administration will ensure that military aid to Islamabad is "accountable" and will appoint a Special Envoy for Pakistan and Afghanistan.

"(We will be) promoting a stable relationship between India and Pakistan which will further contribute to Afghanistan's long-term stability," she said in a statement.

The recent Pakistan elections are a key step towards the return of democracy for Pakistan and the establishment of a civilian-led government, the former first lady said.

The Clinton campaign said that the assistance to Pakistan should be targeted at strengthening democratic institutions, building civil society, and improving economic and educational opportunities.

"A stable and democratic Pakistan will be a stronger security partner for the United States in the years ahead," it said in a statement.

The campaign claimed that providing security to Afghanistan cannot be accomplished without greater security on the Afghan-Pakistan border and greater stability within Pakistan.

Pakistan would be provided needed security aid and expertise to deal with the extremist threats.

"Military aid would be accountable," it added. As President, Clinton will appoint a special envoy to work with Afghanistan and Pakistan and NATO to develop a regional strategy to defeat the Taliban and Al Qaeda, the campaign said.

"The envoy would also attempt to engage Iran to prevent drug smuggling and support the Afghan government. This would give the United States an opportunity to engage Iran positively in an area in which we share common interests," it added.