The Hindu : Front Page : Pakistan must fulfil its obligations: Miliband

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Jan 14, 2009
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

Front Page

Front Page

Pakistan must fulfil its obligations: Miliband

Sandeep Dikshit

Pranab wants Islamabad to extradite all suspects

— Photo: AP

British Foreign Secretary David Miliband talks to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in New Delhi on Tuesday.

NEW DELHI: British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said here on Tuesday that he did not agree with the perception of Pakistani agencies’ involvement in the Mumbai terror attacks but called upon Islamabad to fulfil its international obligations by frontally challenging the terror groups operating from its territory.

Mr. Miliband, who was addressing a joint news conference with External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, said: “I have said publicly that I do not believe the attacks were directed by the Pakistani State.” But he felt it was “clear where the responsibility lies for Mumbai attacks, it is with the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT)…Britain wants Pakistan to comply with its obligations to deal with terror…Pakistan has a fundamental responsibility to tackle the roots of the LeT, which is clearly behind the Mumbai attacks….it is essential in this case.”

At the end of ‘exhaustive” talks, Mr. Mukherjee insisted that Pakistan must extradite all those sheltered there after committing crimes on the Indian soil. He hoped Pakistan would be obliged to implement all international conventions and the resolution by the United Nations Security Council on bearing down on organisations and individuals responsible for executing terror acts.

Mr. Mukherjee hoped that with the help of the material and evidence provided by India, Pakistan would act and ensure that the perpetrators of the Mumbai attacks were brought to justice.

Disappointment

In an indication of New Delhi’s disappointment with the international community’s response, he said while India received all round “verbal support” from the international community, “all have their perceptions.” But, this was a problem that must be addressed collectively so that the perpetrators of the attack were brought to justice.

The attacks “need not” be looked through the prism of India-Pakistan relations. The attackers were part of a global terror network, whose sole belief was death and destruction.

Mr. Miliband pointed out that Britain had a “very strong historical interest” in Pakistan and wanted to see a stable civilian government in charge of the country’s polity. Viability of the Pakistani State was vital for the security of both India and Pakistan. He was hopeful of Pakistan’s legal system measuring up to the challenge of a fair trial for terror suspects and appropriately punishing them if they were found guilty.

Sound economy

On the economic front, he disagreed with the notion that the collapse of Satyam Computer Services exposed India’s corporate underbelly. He pointed out that India’s growth story was largely based on sound macroeconomic fundamentals.

“One bad apple does not mean that the whole barrel is rotten. India’s economic development is based on real and sound macroeconomics, entrepreneurship and a zeal for innovations. In many ways it is a model for many parts of the world,” he said.

Mr. Mukherjee agreed that the Indian economy was based on strong fundamentals. Despite thee global financial meltdown, the government was confident of registering a growth rate of seven to 7.5 per cent in the current fiscal.

On the “recent development” (Satyam), he said appropriate steps would be taken.

After spending two more days in India, Mr. Miliband will leave for Islamabad to discuss the security situation in Afghanistan and India.

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

Front Page