The Hindu : National : Foreign policy unclear, says Yashwant Sinha

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Dec 21, 2004

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National

Foreign policy unclear, says Yashwant Sinha

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, DEC. 20. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) today accused the Government of having an unclear foreign policy and demanded that it clarify whether it was prepared to accept the membership of the United Nations Security Council with or without the veto.

Speaking during a short duration discussion on foreign policy in the Rajya Sabha, the former Minister for External Affairs, Yashwant Sinha, quoted a report in The Hindu to ask how the visiting chief of Russia's nuclear establishment could make a statement about not supplying fuel to Indian nuclear plants, despite the fact that both countries enjoyed an all-weather relationship.

Surrendering to U.S.

Mr. Sinha alleged that the Government had yielded to the U.S. by agreeing to end-use verification on dual-use technology and by not doing enough to stop sale of arms to Pakistan.

"When we were in power, the Congress and the Left were lampooning us for surrendering to the U.S. But if reports that India has agreed to end-use verifications are correct, it is a matter of grave concern and amounts to surrendering before the U.S." Mr. Sinha said the Government was not paying enough attention to the January 6 agreement with Pakistan for ending cross-border terrorism.

"Where is the foreign policy of this country heading? In seven months, it is a shambles. There are contradictory statements. The Defence Minister, the Home Minister, the External Affairs Minister and the Prime Minister's Office are all speaking in different voices," he said, before referring to another report in The Hindu to prove his point.

`Well-reshaped'

On the other hand, the Congressman, Karan Singh, said the foreign policy of the Government had been well-reshaped in tune with the changing times and welcomed the ongoing talks with Pakistan on a number of confidence-building measures.

Nilotpal Basu of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) pointed to the growing ties with Israel and said this would jeopardise India's long-standing ties with West Asian countries. He said India should represent the concerns of the developing countries and mould its attitude accordingly, instead of behaving like a superpower. Mr. Basu said he favoured a nuanced and balanced approach towards foreign policy.

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