Musharraf: Afghanistan Is a "Proxy Conflict" Between Pakistan and India!c

Former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf said he believes that Afghanistan has become the source of a proxy battle between his country and India. "In Afghanistan there is some kind of a proxy conflict going on between Pakistan and India. India is trying to create an anti-Pakistan Afghanistan," he said in an interview with David Bradley, owner of the Atlantic Media Company, at the Washington Ideas Forum on Thursday. Musharraf, who led Pakistan from 1999 through 2008, said this was part of "India's vision of dominating the region" and its "ambition to create a weak Pakistan." Musharraf, who was personally involved in Pakistan's conflicts against India, added that many Afghan officials are trained by their Indian counterparts. "We know that Afghanistan's intelligence, Afghanistan's diplomats, Afghanistan's soldiers and army, all go to India for training, so we have offered them free training. Not one man has come to Pakistan for such training! We receive diplomats, soldiers, intelligence officers indoctrinated against Pakistan's interests." He did however urged calming of that relationship. "I have called India to tell them that I am a man of war, but I am really a man of peace. I understand the ravages of war more than most people."