India will correct trade 'mistake': Vajpayee

By P. S. Suryanarayana

MOSCOW, NOV. 6. The Indo-Russian smiles, which reflected the growth of bilateral ties through times of sun and snow, did not conceal the reality that they might still need to walk the extra mile. Russia today did not categorically suggest a designated role for India in regard to the U.N. efforts to resolve the Afghan crisis. Nor did Russia hint openly at the possibility of an informal but strategic anti-terror triangle involving Moscow and Washington as also New Delhi. By underscoring the idea of a pivotal U.N. role in the fight against terrorism, Russia and India pushed such thoughts to the behind-the-scene background.

On the bilateral front, the good news for Moscow was that the Prime Minister, Mr. Atal Behari Vajpayee, told the Russian President, Mr. Vladimir Putin, that India would ``revoke'' by the end of this year a ``mistake'' in having retained Russia in the category of a ``non-market'' economy. For New Delhi, a matter of much cheer was Russia's intentions of sustaining as also enhancing its ties with India in the defence-related sectors. Mr. Putin made clear that Russia was now looking for new avenues of bilateral cooperation. While the specifics were not spelt out by either side, Mr. Vajpayee remarked that he would like to match Mr. Putin's flair for the details on a wide array of issues including bilateral trade.

The latest Indo-Russian declarations smacked of a desire on both sides, even if for different reasons, to articulate strategic and anti-terror issues in a manner that might please both of them in the context of a flux in their independent equations with Washington. However, there was no definitive space-trajectory for charting the interactions among the three on these sensitive issues.

On the record, Mr. Putin portrayed a picture of some pluses and some minuses for India. Answering questions from the media, Mr. Putin said that the U.N.'s existing mechanism for Afghanistan ``can and should be employed.'' At the same time, he said, ``India should have an opportunity to be more actively involved in the workings, in the proceedings, of the mechanism and in the overall efforts to settle the problem.'' In this context, ``India is not just an acceptable partner for us but also a desirable partner for us''.

Mr. Putin indirectly blamed the U.S. for adopting ``double standards'' in its anti-terror campaign with a stated global sweep. According to him, ``there is no such thing as good terrorist and bad terrorist, our terrorists and others''. On India's sensitivities about Kashmir, Mr. Putin took this line: ``We welcome the direct dialogue (between India and Pakistan). It is our hope that the dialogue would bring positive results.''

Gujarat, Astrakhan sign pact

PTI reports:

The Gujarat Government and Russia's Astrakhan province entered into a protocol of cooperation to enhance trade between the two regions.

The Gujarat Chief Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi, and the Governor of Astrakhan region, Mr. Anatoly Guzhvin, signed the protocol agreement. ``The agreement between envisages bringing closer not only the two regions, but also the two countries much closer by way of enhanced trade, joint projects and other forms of economic exchanges,'' an Indian Embassy release said.

Cooperation in banking sector

UNI reports:

A long-standing demand of Indian and Russian businessmen for servicing of trade through a well-established, reliable banking channel between the two countries was met today with the sealing of a protocol of intentions to set up an Indian bank in Moscow.

The State Bank of India and the Central Bank of Russian Federation signed the protocol of intentions for setting up the bank, which will be operational by next year. The commercial bank of India is a 60:40 joint venture between the SBI and the Canara Bank.

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