Washington, April 12: US President Barack Obama has asked Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani to take stern and decisive action against those involved in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, a move that could be construed as an improvement in New Delhi’s bonding with Washington.
The US President met the Pakistani Prime Minister and foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi a few hours after his talks with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Sunday.
During his meeting with President Obama, Prime Minister Singh had expressed concern about activities in Pakistan. Dr Singh told the US President that Pakistan “lacked the will to punish” those responsible for the Mumbai terror attacks, foreign secretary Nirupama Rao said. “This is where the partnership of India and the US could make the difference,” Dr Singh told Mr Obama.
However, despite the stern signals to Pakistan, there were reports that Mr Obama, during his meeting with the Pakistani leaders, said he was “very fond of Pakistan” and his administration was “very keen to take the strategic relationship with Islamabad forward”.
The Pakistan Prime Minister replied in the affirmative when asked later by reporters whether some action could now be expected from Pakistan. “Certainly. I am against terrorism and always of the opinion that those who are the culprits, they should be brought to justice,” Mr Gilani said.
However, despite warnings to Pakistan and pressure from India, access to Pakistani-American terrorist David Coleman Headley remains somewhat under a cloud. The issue was raised during the talks between Prime Minister Singh and President Obama. Dr Singh, polite but firm, also mentioned Hafiz Saeed, founder of the Lashkar-e-Tayyaba (LeT) and HuJI chief Iliyas Kashmiri while talking about terrorist threats emanating from Pakistan. He said that “in ensuring the architecture of high economic growth for countries like India, what happens in our neighbourhood is of crucial importance”. Dr Singh told Mr Obama that the “terrorist onslaught in our region, if it persisted, could affect our growth prospects.” He made it clear that the “terrorist menace has to be tackled” and that “this was an issue on which India and US stood on the same side”. In his specific reference to developments in Pakistan and Afghanistan, the Prime Minister said that how “the terrorism menace was tackled would determine the future of the South Asian region”. Prime Minister Singh also informed President Obama about the “tremendous rise in infiltration across the Line of Control”. Dr Singh also expressed concern over US military assistance to Pakistan.
President Obama said that he “understood India’s deep concern in regard to the issue and also on the situation in Afghanistan” and that “India’s interests were consistently on the mind of the United States”.
Iran also figured in the talks. Ms Rao said the issue figured with reference to the ongoing discussions in New York on the possibility of a UN Security Council resolution to deal with the Iranian nuclear issue. Dr Singh very clearly made known India’s position in this regard, Ms Rao said, adding that India has “always stressed that Iran has certain obligations to fulfil as a member of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty...” On the issue of sanctions, she said that “the Prime Minister said that our position is that sanctions, when they target ordinary people, have always been counter-productive”.
With regard to access to Headley, Ms Rao reiterated that the US President was “fully supportive of the request for the provision of access to Headley which is being worked through the legal system”. She did not speak of any extradition process.
A brief statement from the White House spoke of the meeting between the two leaders and the resolve to “strengthen the robust relationship”, and that the US was “looking forward to the upcoming US-India strategic dialogue as the next step in process”. The statement, which steered clear of any contentious issues, including Headley, however, stated that the “two leaders also discussed the situation in Afghanistan and their shared vision for a strong, stable and prosperous South Asia”. It concluded by saying the leaders also discussed a number of regional and global issues, including counter-terrorism and non-proliferation.” Making it clear that there was “no disconnect” between India and the US, Ms Rao described the meeting as “extremely positively and constructive”.
Sanjay Basak