Krishna in Pak for key talks
ISLAMABAD, July 14: The minister for external affairs, Mr S.M. Krishna, began his Pakistan visit on Wednesday by reminding his hosts that justice must not only be done to India’s core concern of terrorism but must be seen to be done. He indicated that there was enough evidence to link Pakistan to the Mumbai terrorist attacks.
“[I] look forward to receiving feedback on the issues raised by our home minister [Mr P. Chidambaram] during his visit to Pakistan last month on our core concern of terrorism, particularly in the light of the discussions our home minister had in Pakistan in the context of the interrogation of David Coleman Headley,” Mr Krishna said in Islamabad as he embarked on what was described as a new journey to foster better ties with Pakistan.
The minister called for prompt and decisive action on the part of the Pakistan government to address India’s concerns about terrorism in general and, in particular, the delay in the prosecution of Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LeT) commander Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi and six others who are being tried in a Pakistani court on charges of planning and facilitating the Mumbai attacks. The court has asked the Pakistan government to respond to Lakhvi’s bail plea by Saturday when the matter will come up for hearing again.
New Delhi has laid down some markers for taking the bilateral engagement to a higher level and it has urged Islamabad to dismantle the infrastructure of terrorism operating from its soil, bring the perpetrators of the Mumbai attacks to justice, and to take action against individuals such as Hafiz Saeed, the LeT chief, who spew vitriol against India and threaten to hold the bilateral ties to ransom.
On Thursday, Mr Krishna will hold delegation-level talks with his Pakistan counterpart, Mr Shah Mahmood Qureshi. He will call on the Pakistan President, Mr Asif Ali Zardari, and the Prime Minister, Mr Yusuf Raza Gilani, later in the day
The home secretary, Mr G.K. Pillai, set the tone for the foreign ministers’ talks when he reiterated New Delhi’s stand that the ISI was behind the Mumbai attacks. It was not just a peripheral role. They were literally controlling and coordinating it from the beginning till the end, Mr Pillai said.
Comments
This is a waste of India's
nirode mohanty
15 Jul 2010 - 05:59
This is a waste of India's tax payer’s money to visit for a dialogue. It will serve no purpose except that Pakistan will reinforce that Kashmir is a disputed territory. It is known worldwide that Pakistan is behind unrest and upheaval in Kashmir to severe all links and to postpone all dialogue until Pakistan dismantle all terrorist networks in its soil.
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