ABM Treaty: 'Russia needs to be consulted'

By Vladimir Radyuhin

MOSCOW, JUNE 8. India is opposed to any unilateral abrogation of the 1972 Anti- Ballistic Missile Treaty, the Defence and External Affairs Minister, Mr. Jaswant Singh, said in an interview published today.

Mr. Singh told Krasnaya Zvezda (Red Star), the Russian Defence Ministry daily, that India's position on the missile defence issue had been ``misinterpreted''.

``India has welcomed proposals to strengthen global security,'' Mr. Singh was quoted by the daily. ``But we have also made it clear that there must be no violation or abrogation of the 1972 ABM Treaty, which is a bilateral accord between Russia and America... In our dialogue with the United States, we are emphasising the need to consult Russia in moving towards the development of new anti-missile systems.''

Mr. Singh reiterated Delhi's support for a multi-polar world. ``India stands completely for multi-polarity, for the world cannot have the situation when it is dominated by one superpower,'' he told the daily.

Mr. Singh's explanations on India's stand on missile defences enabled the Russian Defence Minister, Mr. Sergei Ivanov, to state after their talks that Russia and India shared identical or close views on the ABM Treaty and global security.

Asked about the Taliban, Mr. Singh described it as ``a terrorist organisation'' that was perpetrating ``unheard-of crimes against humanity''. He rejected Islamabad's assertion that recognition of the Taliban was the only way to resolve the Afghan problem. ``We cannot accept calls to recognise the Taliban,'' Mr. Singh said.

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