The Hindu : We believe in peace: Vajpayee

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Feb 01, 2004

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We believe in peace: Vajpayee

By Amit Baruah

NEW DELHI, JAN. 31. The Prime Minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, said today that nations may sometimes go to war with each other, but sooner or later they "realise the futility of bloodshed and the utility of dialogue."

Paying tributes to the memory of Mahatma Gandhi, at a convention on peace and non-violence organised by Gandhi Smriti, he stressed that India had always believed in having peaceful, friendly and cooperative relations with all her neighbours. "We are happy that the 12th summit of SAARC [South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation] nations, which was held in Islamabad early this month, was a major step forward in regional cooperation," he said.

"As I said at the summit, we have to change South Asia's image and standing in the world. We must make the bold transition from mistrust to trust, from discord to concord, and from tension to peace. It is in the same spirit that my Government has been trying to resolve all outstanding issues with Pakistan through dialogue," Mr. Vajpayee said.

Referring to the Mahatma's message, he said: "The immense moral force and the unwavering consistency with which he championed the imperative of peace and non-violence - both in the immediate neighbourhood and the world at large - brought hope to mankind battered by wars and conflicts."

Speaking in the presence of the former German and Indonesian Presidents, Richard Weizsaecker and Abdurrahman Wahid, Mr. Vajpayee said the existence of the United Nations was, perhaps, the single most important reason why there had not been major wars since the end of the World War II.

"However, the U.N. system needs to be reformed and restructured to accurately reflect contemporary realities as well as to make it more effective in dealing with the challenges of today's world. Recent global developments have sharply illustrated this need."

Terrorism, inspired by religious extremism, was a new threat to peace, Mr. Vajpayee said.

"Perhaps no country has suffered as much from this threat as India has. The threat of terrorism has to be dealt with firmly - both through the action of individual nations and through international solidarity... I am confident that this is a passing phase and the world's collective efforts will succeed in dealing with the menace."

In his speech, Mr. Weizsaecker launched a sharp attack on the United States and its allies for the attack on Iraq. The war had increased the risk of terrorism, he said. Pointing out that the strike on Iraq took place on the basis of unproven rumours of the country possessing weapons of mass destruction, he said that one nation was taking one-sided decisions.

The former Prime Minister, I.K. Gujral, too, criticised the doctrine of pre-emptive strikes enunciated by the U.S. "This doctrine is a challenge to the world order and the U.N. system."

He said "pre-emptive war" (as seen in the case of Iraq) had created conditions conducive to the growth of terrorism. At the same time, he used harsh words for terrorists and their backers; pointing out that terrorism inevitably bites the hand that feeds it.

Like the former President, R. Venkatraman, who presided over the inaugural function, Mr. Gujral welcomed the thaw in relations between India and Pakistan following the visit of Mr. Vajpayee to Islamabad.

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