Durban declaration, diplomatic win for India

India made it absolutely clear to the member nations that the series of nuclear tests conducted by it should not be considered an act of proliferation and moved a resolution to hold the nuclear weapons convention by 1999 to evolve agreement on the time bound elimination of the nuclear weapons.

Without naming India and Pakistan, the declaration said that the8220;complexities arising from nuclear tests in South Asia, underlined the need to work harder to achieve the goal of nuclear disarmament.8221;

The two countries promised to discontinue nuclear tests and not to transfer nuclear weapon-related technology to any third country.

The summit, which was inaugurated by South African President Nelson Mandela, was attended by over 55 heads of state and government, including Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajapayee and Cuban President Fidel Castro.

Notable absentees at the summit were the Gulf rulers, prime ministers of Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Malaysia, besides Indonesian president Habbibie.

Representatives of India and Pakistan also held a series of talks on bilateral matters on the sidelines of the summit, in which the reference of NAM chairman on the Kashmir issue evoked a sharp reaction from Vajpayee.

The declaration expressed concern over the failure of the nuclear weapons states to demonstrate a genuine commitment with regard to complete nucleardisarmament.

The declaration remained silent on the recent bombing of Afghanistan, but condemned the US for its missile attack on Sudan, describing it a violation of international law. The summit also said the US action was an act of aggression on Sudan.

However, none of the participating countries condemned attacks on militant camps of Saudi billionaire Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan as a majority of the members felt that the Taliban regime of Afghanistan was responsible for spreading terrorism.

The summit expressed its full commitment to the sovereignty and territorial integrity and national unity of war-torn Afghanistan.

It called on all states to strictly refrain from outside interference in the internal affairs of Afghanistan. The declaration stressed the need that the main responsibility for finding a political solution to the conflict lay with the Afghan parties.

Presence of deposed president prof Burhanuddin Rabbani at the summit meeting was a clear rebuff to the Taliban regime, which triedbest to secure support for a seat in the NAM.

It took a strong view that the Afghan territory was being used for training and harbouring of terrorists, which creates a threat to peace and stability in the entire region.

The NAM decided to convene an international summit under the auspices of the United Nations to formulate a joint organised response by the international community to terrorism.

The focus of the summit was also on the economic crisis of the developing countries. It accused the developed countries of marginalising the countries of the south by introducing new conditionalities, and stressed the need for the movement to ensure an active presence of its member nations in international economic and commercial negotiations with strong and common positions.

It felt that the globalisation of the world economy, which has created new opportunities, had translated itself into an increased marginalisation for the majority of the countries.

The summit called on the international community tocreate a more balanced and participatory system of international economic relations in which such interdependence would benefit all nations.

8220;The World Trade Organisation should contribute for a non-discriminatory and secure multilateral trading system based on clear and transparent procedures. These procedures should protect the interests of the developing nations,8221; the summit said.