US rebuttal has Advani fuming

NEW DELHI/WASHINGTON, May 20: Even as US State Department spokesman James P Rubin today took strong exception to Home Minister L K Advani's ...

NEW DELHI/WASHINGTON, May 20: Even as US State Department spokesman James P Rubin today took strong exception to Home Minister L K Advani’s statements on the proposed action against abetment of terrorism in Kashmir, a defiant Advani, while maintaining that India held out no threats to Pakistan or anybody else, again reiterated that “terrorism must be, and shall be, crushed without false pity.”

To Advani’s statements on Monday, James Rubin had retorted: “We call upon India to exercise great caution in its statements and actions at this particularly sensitive time, with emotions running high.” He dubbed Advani’s stand to be “foolish and dangerous.”

“Till now,” Advani reacted, “India’s policy to such provocation (Pak-sponsored militancy) had been essentially reactive. But at the meeting on Kashmir two days back it was decided that any further misadventure on Indian territory shall be dealt with in a pro-active manner.”

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Reacting sharply to Rubin’s remarks that India should exercise caution in itsstatements, Advani said “India is not indifferent to world opinion, but the leaders of world opinion seem to be indifferent to India’s security concerns.”

Spelling out the reasons for his statements on Monday, including the one that Pakistan must now come to terms with the changed geo-strategic situation in the sub-continent, Advani said, “The technological skills displayed by India at Pokharan were as much a shock to Pakistan as our military powers were in 1971.” “India has now moved far beyond the previous obsession with our western neighbour. When I spoke of geo-strategic changes the other day, this is precisely what I had in mind,” he added.

“It is entirely possible that they — unable to match the Indian skills in science — shall revert to extending terrorist activities in the Kashmir Valley and elsewhere.”