India welcomes Iraq resolution

India's formal welcome of the UN Security Council resolution on Iraq today 8212;stressing the 8216;8216;central role of the UN8217;146...

India8217;s formal welcome of the UN Security Council resolution on Iraq today 8212;stressing the 8216;8216;central role of the UN8217;8217; as the first step in the transfer of sovereignty to people 8212; comes on the eve of External Affairs Minister K. Natwar Singh8217;s visit to the US to attend the Friday funeral ceremonies of former US president Ronald Reagan.

Singh8217;s unexpected visit will also be utilised to reaffirm India8217;s affections and the high esteem in which it holds the US. In the wake of PM Manmohan Singh8217;s decision to travel to the US Embassy in the Capital to sign the condolence book for Reagan yesterday, Natwar Singh is expected to meet US Secretary of State Colin Powell in Washington tomorrow evening.

Meanwhile, India8217;s reaction to the unanimous passage of the UN resolution on Iraq 8212; amongst the first to do so 8212; echoes a thank-you reply sent by Singh to a congratulatory note he received from his Iraqi counterpart Hoshiar Zebari on his assumption of office last week. Singh8217;s note, carried back by India8217;s ambassador to Iraq B.B. Tyagi, has no mention of any possible role that Indian troops could play in the new Iraq, just as today8217;s reaction omits that possibility.

MEA officials stressed that the issue of command and control, besides an invitation from the new Iraqi government or the UN, would remain a pre-condition for any consideration on the matter.

Instead, New Delhi endorsed the interim government of Iraq as the 8216;8216;first step towards the transparent transfer of full sovereignty to the people of Iraq. The priority should now be to ensure an early return to conditions of security and normalcy for all people of Iraq,8217;8217; the statement said.

Officials pointed out that by stressing the process of transfer of sovereignty, New Delhi was making the 8216;8216;best of a bad job in Iraq.8217;8217; In his letter to Zebari, Singh also spoke of New Delhi8217;s desire to play a role in Iraq8217;s economic and political reconstruction, a line that finds its place in today8217;s formal reaction to the Security Council resolution as well.

In it, New Delhi has focussed on the 8216;8216;unanimously accepted8217;8217; role of the UN.