Can’t back outside hand in West Asia, PM tells NAM

Singh spoke soon after the Syrian delegation walked out in protest against Egypt’s President Mohammed Morsi’s statement that the Egyptian revolution was the “cornerstone” of the Arab Spring,and after Libya and Yemen,the “revolution (was) in Syria against its oppressive regime”.

Addressing the Non-Aligned Movement Summit,Singh said: “As the world’s largest democracy,India supports popular aspirations for a democratic and pluralistic order. Nevertheless,such transformations cannot be prompted by external intervention,which exacerbate the suffering of ordinary citizens. The deteriorating situation in Syria is a matter of particular concern.”

At the same time,the PM called for NAM to take a stand “keeping in mind universally accepted principles”,and urged a peaceful resolution of the problem through “a Syrian-led inclusive political process that can meet the legitimate aspirations of all Syrian citizens”.

Syria has been dominating the sidelines of the summit in Iran,one of the main supporters of President Bashar al-Assad’s regime. India has adopted an even-handed approach and ensured it does not take sides in the conflict. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon urged NAM member states to help strengthen democratic institutions and to not arm either side in the conflict. “Ultimately it is the responsibility of the Syrian government to listen to the aspirations of its people find a resolution,” Ban said.

Morsi,the first Egyptian president to visit Iran after 1979,has been pushing for a group comprising Egypt,Iran,Turkey and Saudi Arabia to negotiate a settlement with Assad’s government. Following Syria’s protest on Thursday,however,it is unclear what this so-called ‘Tehran Initiative’ might be able to achieve.

India does not see the summit as an occasion to resolve the Syrian issue. Senior sources in the government said that despite the fiery speeches by its leaders,Iran too is not trying to alter settled formulations in the NAM outcome document. India’s understanding is that Iran is more keen to project solidarity on Syria than to provoke differences that might threaten the successful conclusion of the summit.

As of now,the NAM declaration — to be released Friday — states that the summit “welcomed the appointment of Lakhdar Brahimi” as the the new UN and Arab League envoy to Syria. It calls for “full implementation of the Joint Envoys Plan and its six points as well as the Security Council resolutions 2042 and 2043. And they welcomed the acceptance by the Syrian government of this plan”.

In his address,the PM expressed hope for a stable and peaceful West Asia. “Nearly two decades ago,India embarked on a ‘look east’ policy in an endeavour to learn and benefit from and contribute to the evolution of a new Asian economic community to our east. However,the progress,prosperity,well being,political stability and plurality of the Asia to our west has always been of equal historical and civilisational significance for us.”

Singh called for NAM to take the lead in building credible and effective global governance structures. He said the deficit in global governance was “perhaps most stark in the sphere of peace and security,and in restoring just and fair economic and financial mechanism”.

“It is my sincere hope that the movement can agree on action to reform institutions such as the United Nations Security Council,the World Bank and the IMF. Existing problems cannot be solved effectively without a greater voice for developing countries on issues such as global trade,finance and investment.”