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Observations on Holbrooke interview with PBS' Newshour from blogger centrist vector:
Mr. Holbrooke committed news in the interview with Ms. Woodruff, announcing that Pakistan and Afghanistan would each send a delegation of senior officials to Washington next week, the week of 23 February, as part of their participation in the AfPak strategy review, giving “input and getting ideas from us.”
Ms. Woodruff segued into concerns held by some Pakistani officials about Indian involvement in Afghanistan, asking Mr. Holbrooke if a “regional competition” was involved. Mr. Holbrooke replied:
This is an interesting point. I went to New Delhi (after going to Pakistan and Afghanistan) where we were welcomed and we had very excellent consultations. And the Indians are also sending senior officials to Washington -- but not next week, a couple of weeks down the road.Mr. Holbrooke inflected the passage “– but not next week...” as if it were a sudden afterthought to committing accidental news, clarifying that the Indian delegation’s visit would not be concurrent with the Pak and Afghan teams. The offset in schedules during this “reverse shuttle diplomacy” helps preserve the veneer that India is outside the AfPak mandate. (The Special Representative did not expressly state the Indian delegation would participate in the AfPak strategy review in the same manner as their regional counterparts, but the interview context implies suitable involvement.) ...