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SAARC summit delayed by a day
By C. Raja Mohan
KATHMANDU, JAN. 4. The prospects for an Indo-Pak. dialogue here remain up in the air as the opening session of the summit of South Asian leaders scheduled to begin here this afternoon was postponed by a day due to the delayed arrival of the Pakistan President, Pervez Musharraf.
Both India and Pakistan are affirming their readiness for a dialogue but are apparently finding it difficult to overcome the obstacles that relate to diplomatic protocol and political substance.
Gen. Musharraf who flew in late from China because of bad weather said he hoped to see all the South Asian leaders but was not sure if a meeting with the Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, would materialise.
Talking briefly to reporters at the airport, Gen. Musharraf suggested it was not a question of who invited whom for a conversation. ``There should be willingness on both sides for talks.''
The President's comments were in response to the remarks of the External Affairs Minister, Jaswant Singh, on Thursday that there was no request for a bilateral meeting from the Pakistan side.
While protocol problems are not insurmountable, the real difficulty appears tied to the question whether Gen. Musharraf is prepared to take concrete actions that could convince the Indian side about his seriousness in tackling cross-border terrorism.
A sense of diplomatic stillness descended on Kathmandu a day after Mr. Singh appeared to show a way out of the crisis. The External Affairs Ministry spokesperson, Nirupama Rao, was unwilling to elaborate on Mr. Singh's remarks that suggested a readiness to give more time for Gen. Musharraf to eliminate terrorism but called for two immediate steps to prove his sincerity.
Mr. Singh said India expected a ``forthright'' declaration against terrorism from Pakistan, and ``action'' on the list of terrorists and criminals handed over to Pakistan recently.
At her press conference, Ms. Rao underscored the importance of Pakistan creating a ``conducive atmosphere'' for a dialogue and insisted that there had been ``no satisfactory response'' so far.
Stating that India had ``not shut the door'' on a dialogue with Pakistan, she suggested that it was ``India's sovereign right to determine'' if a conducive atmosphere had been created for a bilateral engagement.
Later, Rashid Qureshi, spokesman for the Pakistani President, reiterated that Pakistan had always been for talks and ``we are waiting for a response'' from India.
On the question of creating a conducive atmosphere, Gen. Qureshi went at length on what Pakistan had done in the last few months to move in a gradual way against terrorism and sectarian violence, under the laws of the country.
He added that the world had appreciated Pakistan's cooperation in the war against international terrorism. Gen. Qureshi also pointed to his Government's condemnation of the December 13 attack against Indian Parliament and the offer of an impartial inquiry.
Retreat cancelled
The postponement of the summit by a day has resulted in the virtual cancellation of the planned retreat in Nagarkot, just outside Kathmandu, for Saturday morning. But a scaled-down version of the retreat, in the form of informal consultations, is expected to take place on Saturday afternoon in Kathmandu itself.
That still leaves some space for an informal chat between Indian and Pakistani leaders. Whether Mr. Vajpayee will engage Gen. Musharraf or not, there is a distinct possibility yet of Mr. Singh meeting his counterpart, Abdul Sattar.
The Indian and Pakistani leaders, along with their South Asian colleagues, were all present tonight at a banquet hosted for the South Asian leaders by King Gyanendra of Nepal. But there were no reports of any substantive Indo-Pak. interaction.
Meanwhile, officials are close to finalising the Kathmandu Declaration that will be issued by the leaders at the end of the summit. India appears to have had little difficulty in getting strong references against terrorism in the declaration. Mr. Vajpayee also met today with the leaders of Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and the Maldives. All these bilateral meetings took place in a very positive atmosphere, Indian officials said.
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