PM asserts Indian right to act against terrorism

By Sridhar Krishnaswami

WASHINGTON, NOV. 9. The Prime Minister, Mr. A. B. Vajpayee, has reiterated that while there is no intention to complicate the current agenda of the U.S. in Afghanistan, India has a legitimate right to take whatever action it can to thwart and respond to terrorism.

``This is what I have written to the President, Mr. Bush. Restraint, like dialogue, has to be a two-way process,'' he said.

Mr. Vajpayee disputed the view that India was sending a message to the U.S. by firing on the Pakistani positions on the eve of the recent visit of the Secretary of State, Gen. Colin Powell.

``There is sufficient mutual confidence, openness and candour in India-U.S. relations today. There is no need for either of us to use means other than speech or written texts to send messages to each other. A large group of terrorists were making a bid to cross our border from the Pakistani side. We took action to stop them. We had to resort to this step from time to time to prevent large-scale infiltration into India by terrorists,'' he said in written response to questions posed by The Washington Post Editors.

Asked if the President of Pakistan was allowing greater latitude to the anti-India militants to compensate for his participation in the anti-Taliban effort, Mr. Vajpayee said Pakistan had not ended its sponsorship of cross-border terrorism in India and cited the October 1 attack on the State Assembly in Srinagar.

``Pakistan must realise that it cannot support the campaign against international terrorism on the one hand, while sponsoring terrorist groups in India on the other.

India has the resolve, strength and stamina to resist this terrorism,'' Mr. Vajpayee said. He ruled out any third party intervention or mediation to settle the dispute between India and Pakistan.

``There can be no place whatsoever for any third party involvement in any aspect of our bilateral relations. When two people can speak the same language, why should either side suddenly seek an interpreter?'' he remarked.

On the stability of the Musharraf Government against the backdrop of the unpopularity of military actions against Afghanistan, Mr. Vajpayee said, ``As a neighbour of Pakistan we have always been concerned at the direction in which Pakistan's society has been moving. This is a direct consequence of the short-sighted policies pursued by Pakistan's military establishment ever since its creation in 1947. Pakistan must realise that the sponsorship of groups practising terrorism and propagating extremist ideologies eventually poses a threat to its own long-term stability,'' Mr. Vajpayee said.

On the subject of security of Pakistan's nuclear weapons, Mr. Vajpayee said it should be addressed by Islamabad. For years New Delhi had voiced serious concern over Pakistan's nuclear programme, including the ``frightening identification of extremists and jehadis'' with the weapons.

``It is not for us to answer for them... It is to be hoped that the official Pakistani claims about the safety and security of their nuclear weapons would be backed by actions on the ground and safeguard against unauthorised access,'' he said.

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Section  : International
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