NEW DELHI: India on Wednesday called on Pakistan to take "urgent steps" to dismantle the infrastructure of terrorism, act resolutely against terrorist groups and uphold its commitment to end extremism as enshrined in the January 6, 2004 joint press statement.

A day after the Mumbai serial blasts, an External Affairs Ministry spokesman described as "appalling" remarks made by Pakistan Foreign Minister Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri that drew a link between the Mumbai attacks and non-resolution of disputes between India and Pakistan.

"We find it appalling that Foreign Minister Kasuri should seek to link this blatant and inhuman act of terror to the so-called lack of resolution of disputes between India and Pakistan. His remarks appear to suggest that Pakistan will cooperate with India against the scourge of cross-border terrorism and terrorist violence only if such so-called disputes are resolved," he told presspersons.

Terrorism, the spokesman said, could not be tolerated on any ground and no cause justified the murder of innocent people.

(Mr. Kasuri was quoted as saying in an interview to Reuters in Washington: "I think the Mumbai incident — however tragic it may be, and it is undoubtedly very tragic — underlines the need for the two countries to work together to control this environment, but they can only do so if they resolve their disputes.")

The spokesman said New Delhi hoped that Islamabad would reject any linkage between terrorist violence in India and the non-resolution of disputes and join hands to defeat the forces of terrorism.

Misreported, says Pakistan

Nirupama Subramanian reports from Islamabad:

Pakistan said on Wednesday that Reuters had "misreported" Mr. Kasuri's remarks on the Mumbai train blasts.

"At no stage during the interview did the Foreign Minister talk about a connection between Mumbai terrorist attack and the Jammu and Kashmir dispute," the Foreign Office said in a statement.

It said Mr. Kasuri "had emphatically and unequivocally condemned the terrorist attack in Mumbai.

While speaking about the peace process, Mr. Kasuri said a number of confidence building measures were in place and the atmosphere between the two countries had improved. The time, therefore, was right to address all outstanding issues including the Jammu and Kashmir dispute."

The statement said, "Pakistan does not tolerate terrorism and is in the forefront of international efforts to fight this menace."

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail