Manmohan: no precondition for talks

October 29, 2009 01:34 pm | Updated November 17, 2021 06:44 am IST - Srinagar

India is ready to discuss all issues with Pakistan if an atmosphere that is fruitful for negotiations is created, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said here on Thursday.

At a press conference, he said there was no precondition for talks, but they cannot make headway unless there was “effective control” of the terror groups operating in that country.

India’s and Pakistan’s destinies, he reiterated, were very closely interlinked. If negotiations to deal with all outstanding issues were to make any headway, it was essential that the terror elements were brought under control, he said. “We are a democracy. If day in day out, terrorist attacks are put to take the precious lives of our citizens, we can’t create the requisite environment for meaningful negotiations. So it is not a precondition, but I am saying it is a practical way of looking at things.”

No aid to Taliban

Dr. Singh denied that India was helping the Taliban and termed the charge made by a senior Pakistan Minister totally false. “I think nothing can be far-fetched, far from truth. We are the victims of terrorism, aided and abetted from the Pakistani side. Therefore, my simple answer is that both the references to Balochistan and what has been said with regard to India funding the Taliban are totally false,” he said.

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