The Hindu : National : ‘Independent foreign policy in danger’

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Wednesday, Aug 22, 2007
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‘Independent foreign policy in danger’

D. Chandra Bhaskar Rao

MUDIGONDA (Khammam district): CPI (M) general secretary Prakash Karat said here on Tuesday that the independent foreign policy of the country was in danger as the Manmohan Singh government was drifting more and more into a strategic alliance with the United States.

Addressing a rally organised by the Left parties in commemoration of those killed in the police firing here on July 28, he said the UPA government’s nuclear agreement with the U.S. had serious ramifications.

He said the American Government was trying to get India to change its foreign policy.

The Congress government under Jawaharlal Nehru had opted for an independent foreign policy with non-aligned status. Now it was a Congress government under Dr. Manmohan Singh that was going for a compromise on it. The growing influence of the U.S. would be harmful to India. That was why the Left parties wanted the nuclear pact to be put on hold.

It is for the UPA government to decide whether it would go with the U.S. or with the people of India. The Left parties had asked the government to decide it within few days. “We are not here to support any strategic alliance with the U.S. and there would not be any compromise on the stand.”

Naval exercise

He called upon the people to oppose the joint naval exercise being taken with the American Navy off the coast of Visakhapatnam from September 4.

He said the Left parties would organise two protest marches — one from Kolkata to Visakhapatnam and the other from Chennai to Visakhapatnam — from September 4 to 9 against the joint exercise.

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