| JIM LEHRER: The India-Pakistan
confrontation over Kashmir. President Bush directly intervened today,
calling the leaders of both countries to urge restraint. We'll hear from
the Pakistani and Indian ambassadors, but first, here's a report from
Ian Williams of Independent Television News.
IAN WILLIAMS: Pakistan's President arrived home early this morning,
having achieved little of substance during a regional summit in Kazakhstan.
Not only had his Indian counterpart refused a face-to- face meeting,
but the two leaders, on the brink of war, had barely acknowledged each
other.
Mr. Vajpayee, the Indian Prime Minister, stayed on, proposing joint
Indian-Pakistan patrols to stop infiltration of militants across the
line of control separating them in Kashmir. But with tensions remaining
high, Pakistan said the idea's old and probably not workable, though
Islamabad didn't reject it out of hand, asking for a formal proposal.
In Pakistan's main cities, the authorities have been carrying out civil
defense exercises. In Rawalpindi, where Richard Armitage, the U.S. Deputy
Secretary of State, is due to land tomorrow, they had an air raid drill--
a resounding success, they claimed.
MOHAMMAD AJAZ, Civil Defense Organization, Rawalpindi (Translated):
The people, volunteers, and all civic agencies of Rawalpindi are fully
prepared for any type of emergency, and they're ready to defend their
country.
IAN WILLIAMS: A demonstration of readiness, they said, though to others
it was further evidence of how little is really understood of the impact
of a war that could quickly turn nuclear.
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