04 February,2009 06:17 PM IST | | PTI
National Security Adviser MK Narayanan on Wednesday issued a curious 'clarification' on his recent comments that US President Barack Obama would be 'barking up the wrong tree' if he links Kashmir issue with addressing the turmoil in Pakistan's tribal areas.
A brief statement issued by the Media Adviser to the Prime Minister said that 'references made' by Narayanan in an interview to television journalist Karan Thapar 'were answers to specific questions put by the interviewer'.
"It is further clarified that the underlying theme of the reply to the question on Indo-US relations was the high expectation India had from the Obama Administration with a hope being expressed that it would be possible for India to make the new administration appreciate India's positions and views on the region, including Kashmir," the Media Adviser's statement said.
Surprisingly, the statement did not make any mention of Narayanan's controversial statement in the same interview that Pakistan had reverted to India with a number of questions on the Indian dossier on the Mumbai terror attack, a comment that directly contradicts the stand taken by External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee.
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The minister had maintained that Pakistan had not officially responded to India.
