NEW DELHI: The US has criticised Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan for not highlighting the plight of the Uyghurs the same way he spoke about the Kashmiris.Alice Wells, US acting assistant secretary for South and Central Asia, said in New York on Thursday (early Friday India time) that Khan’s comments on Kashmir were unhelpful.“A lowering of rhetoric would be welcome, especially between the two nuclear powers.” She also questioned why Khan was not speaking out on China, which has detained an estimated one million Uyghurs. “...I would like to see the same level of concern expressed about Muslims who are being detained in Western China, literally in concentration-like conditions. And so being concerned about the human rights of Muslims does extend more broadly than Kashmir, and you’ve seen the administration very involved here during the UN General Assembly and trying to shine a light on the horrific conditions that continue to exist for Muslims throughout China,” she said.Wells comments came even as US President Donald Trump continued to push for a bilateral dialogue between India and Pakistan. Experts on South Asian affairs told ET that US is of the opinion that Pakistan still has utility in the region and wants to keep it engaged. Khan, asked about the Uyghurs at a thinktank in New York on Monday, declined to comment, saying that Pakistan had a “special relationship” with China and would only raise such issues in private. China allegedly has been trying to forcibly stop Islamic traditions and integrate Uyghurs into the majority Han population. China, however, said that it is only providing vocational training and discouraging extremism. US used the annual United Nations General Assembly to build up international pressure on China over its treatment of the Uyghurs.The State Department had even organised an event on Tuesday to highlight the plight of Uyghurs in China.