Let new ideas proliferate, not weapons: Clinton

By Sridhar Krishnaswami

MUMBAI, MARCH 24. The U.S. President, Mr. Bill Clinton, made yet another pitch for his non-proliferation theme when he asked India to move away from the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and move in the direction of proliferation of ``new ideas, new companies and new technologies''. If this happened, ``then your dreams are well within your grasp'', the President said during a course of a speech at the Mumbai Stock Exchange, here tonight.

Recalling his visit to Naila in Rajasthan, he said, ``I do believe if we can lead the region, or you can, away from the proliferation of dangerous weapons to proliferation of new ideas, new companies and technologies and away from racial and ethnic tensions we now see in the troubled spots in South Asia, we can have the sort of harmony I saw in the little village yesterday.''

The President stressed the need for working together to fight terrorism and all that indiscriminate killings taking place in the name of ethnic cleansing in places such as Bosnia, Kosovo and the Balkans.

Mr. Clinton pointed out the fact that his visit had firmed up business agreements totalling $ 4 billion as well as opening up the possibility of the U.S. Ex-Im Bank providing a $ 1 billion for investments in India.

Addressing a gathering of top business leaders and captains of the Indian industry organised under the aegis of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and the United States-India Business Council (USIBC), he made the point that ``friends do not have to agree on all issues'' and what was important was to have an honest relationship.

Mr. Clinton touched on a number of themes, some of which he had already talked about during his stop at Hyderabad this afternoon. Underlying the importance of the need to accept diversity, Mr. Clinton argued that the ``world will never be that way unless South Asia is that way''.

Mr. Clinton was accompanied to the Mumbai Stock Exchange by his daughter, Chelsea, and the U.S. Ambassador to India, Mr. Richard Celeste. On hand to receive the President were, among others, the Chief Minister of Maharashtra, the Congressional delegation from the United States, the Commerce Secretary, Mr. William Daley, the president of the FICCI, Mr. B.P. Goenka and the chairman-elect of the USIBC, Mr. Frank Wisner.

Recalling the time he had spent at the Rajasthan village, Mr. Clinton observed that it was truly remarkable how the community there had come together over the years forgetting the fact that at one time they could not have dinner together.

Today, the residents were more concerned about immediate problems, such as lack of water. It is in this context that Mr. Clinton called on India to look at the larger picture, to break down the barriers of caste and ethnicity and in the process making the point that there was ``no stopping'' the country if it reached that level.

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