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Journalism of Courage
The Iraq crisis and continuing Pakistani-support for terrorism in Kashmir were the two main issues which figured in the telephone conversation today between US President George Bush and Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee.
The ‘‘pre-arranged’’ call from Bush was put through at 7 pm as the US went about garnering support for the second resolution in the UN Security Council for military action against Baghdad. With UN chief weapons inspector Hans Blix slated to table his report on March 7, time’s running out on Iraq.
While Bush zeroed-in on the Iraq situation, Vajpayee, on his part, reminded him of the need to apply more pressure on Pakistan to end cross-border terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir. The telephone chat lasted seven minutes.
Sources said Bush assured Vajpayee that Washington was continuing to apply pressure on Islamabad, asking it to take particular care that infiltration does not go up once snow starts melting in the mountain passes of Kashmir.
Vajpayee in turn told Bush that New Delhi was willing to talk to Islamabad on all issues if it ended cross-border terrorism.
The call to Vajpayee forms part of the ongoing consultations between New Delhi and Washington. US Secretary of State Colin Powell spoke to External Affairs Minister Yashwant Sinha last month to share with him what the US planned to tell China, Japan and South Korea about the situation in Iraq.
He apprised Sinha of US efforts to drum up support from nine non-permanent Security Council members.
During the telephone conversation today, Vajpayee conveyed the Indian position on Iraq. New Delhi’s take on Iraq, as amplified by Vajpayee’s ‘‘middle path’’ statement in Lok Sabha on Monday, is that Baghdad must give up weapons of mass destruction and comply fully with the UN Security Council resolution 1441.
But New Delhi wants the US to take the multilateral route: go via the Security Council and don’t take any unilateral military action against Iraq.
It wants the Security Council to enforce the Iraq resolution.
India also wants UN sanctions to be lifted against Iraq in case the latter fully complies with resolution 1441.
This was conveyed to Bush by Vajpayee even when the two leaders met in US last September.
During the NAM summit in Kuala Lumpur last month, several heads of state suggested to Vajpayee that India take the lead in getting war averted.
But rather than go ballistic, New Delhi quietly conveyed its stand to Washington.
In fact, the consistent Indian stand has been appreciated both by the US and Iraq.
