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Clinton's call to restart Indo-Pak dialogue |
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March 22, 2000
New Delhi, March 21: US President Bill Clinton today asserted that talks between New Delhi and Islamabad could take place only when there is respect for sanctity and inviolability of the Line Control (LoC) dividing the two South Asian neighbors.
Talking to newsmen after nearly an hour-long delegation level talks between the United States and India and India on the first day of his visit to this country, Clinton asked India and Pakistan to restart the dialogue for a negotiated settlement of their differences but said "to resume the process, the atmosphere required is respect for the Line of Control. Terrorism is no solution."
Clinton's references to respect for LoC came a day after 36 Sikhs were massacred in gruesome incident in Jammu and Kashmir state last night.
Clinton termed the incident as "outrageous" and "horrible" and said targeting of innocent civilians "is the worst thing of modern conflict." "The violence in Kashmir must end and there must be respect for the Line of Control." he said.
Washington and New Delhi later signed a "Joint Vision Statement" setting out the future political and economic relations between the two democracies of the world despite differences on nuclear non-proliferation and some other key issues of bilateral and international concerns.
Both Clinton and Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, who jointly addressed the medial, spoke of the two countries' resolve to build a "productive partnership" based on mutual respect not only for mutual benefits but also for "spreading and towards building a world free form weapons of mass destruction.
Clinton and Vajpayee said both sides had "honest and candid" discussions on the entire gamut of bilateral ties and a host of international issues.
Vajpayee declared that there was no threat of a war between India and Pakistan. "We don't think in terms of a war and nobody should think in terms of a war South Asia," he asserted.
Staring that people-to-people's relations between India and Pakistan is "good," Vajpayee said New Delhi was committed to solving all problems peacefully.
Referring to his historic bus journey to Lahore in February 1999 and Pakistani intrusion in Kargil a few months later, Vajpayee said there "is a deliberate design" to sabotage any peace initiative between India and Pakistan.
Clinton, when asked if a new chapter in US relation with India could begin without progress in talks on CTBT and non-proliferation, said there was "more common ground" between the two countries today in respect of fissile material production, export control and restraint in possible use of nuclear weapons.
He said he was confident of making more progress towards that direction. Clinton, in this contest, recalled the 10 rounds of talks between Indian External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh and US deputy Secretary of State Strove Talbott since June 1999 soon after India exploded nuclear devices.
India and United States also agreed to hold summit level meetings at regular intervals and as a follow-up of this Vajpayee would visit Washington later this year at the invitation of Clinton.
Both Vajpayee and Clinton spoke of the 'time-tested' democratic roots in India and United States and the "Joint Vision Statement" said the two countries "will share their experience in nurturing and strengthening democratic order."
The paragraph in "Joint Vision Statement" on democracy and the two leaders' comments on political pluralism in their separate statements assumed significance in the wake of Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's assertion yesterday that United States, as the world's most powerful democracy, should ensure that the democracy process is protected across the world.
Earlier, Clinton began his visit to India with a ceremonial reception by Indian Prsident K R Narayan and Vajpayee at the forecourt of Rashtrapati Bahawan where the US President also inspects a guard of honor.
Clinton also paid floral tributes to India's Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi at the latter's "samadhi" at Rajghat here.
AP adds: The meeting between Clinton and Vajpayee failed to produce any break troughs on either the Indian Pakistani standoff over Kashmir or on India's nuclear ambitions.
Clinton however renewed his plea for India and Pakistan to restart a peace dialogue.
"The president has not been asked to mediate the dispute between India and Pakistan, but he's urging both sides to exercise restraint and renew dialogue," US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright said.
Clinton said he doubted that a military solution existed to resolve the Kasmir conflict and urged respect by both sides for the 'Line of Control'.
As the two countries pledged closer economic cooperation, India agreed to remove decades old barriers against hundreds of US products and slashing import duties on high technology ranging form cell phones to computers.
The United States, Through its Export-Import Bank, announced guarantees of up to one billion dollar in loans as an incentive for small and midsize Indian companies to buy American products.
Reuter adds: Clinton eased sanctions imposed on India after its nuclear test in 1998 to allow a $25 million US program to strengthen Indian financial markets to resume, the White House said today.
The move will allow the Financial institutions Reform and Expansion program funded by the US Agency for International Development to resume providing technical assistance to India's regulatory agencies and financial markets.
The white House said that under the agreement, US exporters to India will face lower tariffs, by up to one half, on items such as almonds, orange juice, citrus and other fresh fruits.
Source: The Daily Star. |