The Hindu : Front Page : SAARC meet off after Manmohan decides to abstain

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Thursday, Feb 03, 2005

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Front Page

SAARC meet off after Manmohan decides to abstain

By Amit Baruah

NEW DELHI, FEB. 2. For the second time in succession, the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation summit, scheduled for February 6 and 7, was postponed after India announced that the Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, could not attend the SAARC meeting due to poor security conditions in Dhaka and recent developments in Nepal. Previously, the summit, scheduled from January 9 to 11, was put off in the wake of the tsunami.

Under the SAARC charter, a summit cannot be held even if one of the seven heads of government/state cannot attend the meeting.

The Foreign Secretary, Shyam Saran, told presspersons that India wanted to work out new dates for the summit.

The decision not to travel to Dhaka was taken by Dr. Singh after consultations with Left party leaders on Tuesday, top Bharatiya Janata Party leaders on Wednesday and on the assessment of a security team that travelled to Dhaka.

Mr. Saran said India was committed to the SAARC process. "It is only in an environment free from political turmoil and violence that a summit would yield the desired outcome."

Facing a volley of questions, he said the External Affairs Minister, Natwar Singh, had spoken to the King of Bhutan, Jigme Singye Wangchuck, the Sri Lankan Foreign Minister, Lakshman Kadirgamar, and the Maldivian President, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, to explain why India took the decision not to attend the summit.

Bangladesh, of course, had been informed formally while no contact had been possible with King Gyanendra's regime in Kathmandu. Pakistan's Foreign Ministry had also been informed about India's decision.

Mr. Saran denied that India would be seen as a big brother at a time when the remaining five SAARC leaders were ready to travel to Dhaka. "There is no question of behaving like a big brother. Our main objective is to make certain that the SAARC summit comes up with the desired outcomes."

Mr. Saran said the Prime Minister's decision not to travel to Dhaka was not directed against this or that country. No one could deny that a "serious situation" prevailed in India's neighbourhood. "What has happened in Nepal is not an ordinary event. What has been taking place in Bangladesh is not something ordinary."

Asked whether there was a specific threat to the Prime Minister, Mr. Saran said: "Obviously, a certain security assessment has had to be made in the light of the most recent developments including the three bomb blasts which took place in Dhaka ... and including at the high security zone where the Sheraton Hotel is located."

"Every country would make its own assessment with regard to the security situation. We will not speak on their behalf. Our responsibility is with regard to the safety and security of our leaders. In the light of the assessment that we have received we believe that the time is not propitious for holding such a summit," he said.

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