PM asks world to put pressure on Pak to rein in terrorists

Ajay Kaul
Washington, Nov 24 (PTI) Denouncing Pakistan's
"selective" approach on the fight against terrorism, Indian
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has asked the world community to
mount pressure on it to desist from such a behaviour and rein
in those elements who continue to target India.
He expressed readiness to pick up the "threads of the
dialogue" with Pakistan, including on Kashmir, so that they
can "write a new chapter" in South Asia's history, but made it
clear this could not happen till Islamabad abjures terrorism
and comes to the table with "good faith and sincerity."
With the first anniversary of Mumbai carnage just two
days away, Singh said at an interaction at US think-tank
Council for Foreign Relations Monday that the trauma of that
heinous and barbaric attack continues to "haunt us."
To a question, Singh said there was "enormous pressure"
on him after 26/11 to go after Pakistan but "I resisted that
pressure" and the decision, on balance, was the "right one".
Observing that terrorism poses an existential threat to
the civilised world, he said it must be defeated. "We should
not harbour any illusions that a selective approach to
terrorism, tackling it in one place while ignoring it in
others, will work," Singh underlined .
"Pakistan has done something to control the activities of
the Taliban terrorist groups in federally administered areas
but it is our sincere belief that it has not acted as it
should have acted in dealing with terrorist elements who are
using their energies to target our country."
"Nor has Pakistan used all its machinery to bring to book
all those murderers, gangs who perpetrated the horrible crime
in Mumbai in which 200 of our citizens lost their lives,
including six from America," the Prime Minister told the
audience comprising American policy-makers and scholars.
Asked about India's response if such an attack occurs
again, he said, "I hate to speculate and sincerely hope that
such sort of eventuality does not arise."
"That is why, I say, the world community has an
obligation to impress upon Pakistan that it must use all its
influence to curb the power of terrorist groups," said Singh,
who will be discussing with President Barack Obama the problem
of terrorism emanating from Afghan-Pakistan region and ways to
deal with it during their summit talks.
"Pakistan, in our view, should be pressurised by the
world to do much more to bring to book all those people who
are responsible for the horrible crime (of 26/11). After all,
there is now impeccable evidence that the conspiracy was
planned in Pakistan," he said.
Singh noted that the attacks were executed in "active
connivance of people who are still roaming about freely in
Pakistan", apparently referring to "mastermind" Jamaat-ud Dawa
chief Hafiz Saeed about whom Islamabad says there is no
evidence.
"Therefore, I respectfully request the world community to
use all its influence, all the power to make Pakistan to
desist from that sort of behaviour," he said.
Talking about resumption of Indo-Pak dialogue, Singh said
India has "invested heavily" over the past few years in
normalising relations with the neighbour and the two countries
had made "considerable progress on the road to a durable and
permanent settlement of all outstanding issues."
India, he said, seeks a South Asia of peace, friendship
and prosperity where its borders will be energised by the flow
of people, goods and ideas.
"It is my solemn hope that India and Pakistan can
together move forward to write a new chapter in the history of
the sub-continent... I have said that we are ready to pick up
the threads of the dialogue, including on issues related to
Jammu and Kashmir," he told the audience.
For peace and friendship, "Pakistan must make a break
with the past, abjure terrorism and come to the table with
good faith and sincerity," Singh said. PTI AKK
ANU