The Hindu : National : India's help sought for Iraq poll process: Natwar

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Nov 26, 2004

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National

India's help sought for Iraq poll process: Natwar

By Amit Baruah

NEW DELHI, NOV. 25. "We've been asked to help in the electoral process [in Iraq] by asking our Election Commission to send some people there [Iraq] since we have a fair amount of experience in this field. At the same time, I must say that the situation within Iraq at the moment is not a happy situation at all," the External Affairs Minister, Natwar Singh, told a press conference today.

On the occasion of the Congress-led Government completing six months in office, he said that every effort should be made to ensure that elections scheduled for January in Iraq were held on time.

In prepared remarks, he stated: "Our Government has made a clear-cut enunciation of not sending troops to Iraq which has been endorsed by Parliament. At the same time, we have maintained our engagement with the friendly people of Iraq. This has taken the shape of humanitarian aid and more recently support for the election process in the country."

In the past six months, India's foreign policy had "graduated from an event-oriented to a process-oriented" approach. "Instead of being satisfied with mere announcements of fresh initiatives, we now have a policy which is based on a careful consideration of the contemporary challenges that India faces ... "

The Government, he said, believed in having frequent and regular contacts with neighbouring nations. "At the same time, this Government has not hesitated to address issues where there may be differences, but has done so in a spirit of friendship and in a constructive search for practical and mutually acceptable solutions."

"This will be our approach to the forthcoming SAARC summit, which is being held in Dhaka in January next. We remain committed to a collective future of peace and prosperity in the entire South Asian region," he said.

Pointing out that the Government had been able to intensify relations with China, he said this was reflected in the two rounds of talks already held between the Special Representatives of the two countries on the border question.

Pointing out that two State Councillors had visited India from China, Mr. Singh said: "During his visit to India, State Councillor Tang Jiaxuan recognised the active role that India could play in international affairs and in the U.N. Security Council."

"For India, relations with the U.S. have a special flavour because we are both vibrant democracies. Our relations are being expanded across the board. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh met President Bush in September 2004, which resulted in a strong reaffirmation of the strategic partnership between our two countries.

"Our perspectives on specific issues may be different and that may lead to differences in policies. However, we share a great and enduring affinity as people wedded to democratic values and today there is a broad range of interaction between the two countries across the board, that U.S. election results do not fill us with any uncertainty or doubt. India-U.S. relations are beginning to acquire a degree of stability and predictability and a willingness to work together on shared concerns," he said.

According to Mr. Singh, the efforts of the Congress-led Government had brought India to the threshold of permanent membership of the United Nations' Security Council.

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