The Hindu : India ready to work with U.S., U.N. on Iraq

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Apr 18, 2003

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India ready to work with U.S., U.N. on Iraq

By C. Raja Mohan

NEW DELHI April 17. Signalling a more activist approach to the challenges in post-war Iraq, India today said that it was ready to work with the United States and the international community in restoring peace and launching reconstruction in the Gulf nation.

If the parliamentary thunder on Iraq in the dying moments of the Saddam Hussein regime tied Indian policy in knots, the Government is now trying to pick up the threads and find ways to regain the political initiative.

During an interaction with the visiting American Congressmen and their staff at the Confederation of Indian Industry here, the Foreign Secretary, Kanwal Sibal, pointed to the deep divisions created across the world by the war in Iraq. India shared with the U.S. the objective of Iraqi disarmament but had a different view on how it should be achieved, he said. Underlining the importance of putting aside past differences, Mr. Sibal focussed on the urgency of developing a common approach to peace and reconstruction in Iraq.

"India is ready to join hands with the U.S. and the international community" in achieving these objectives, Mr. Sibal said. His remarks have gone the farthest in suggesting that India is now ready to end the stasis in its Iraq policy.

As the United Nations begins the debate on lifting sanctions against Iraq, Mr. Sibal hoped that the Anglo-American powers, on the one hand, and France, Russia and Germany, on the other, would work together "to open the door for an early delivery of aid" to the long suffering people in Iraq. Mr. Sibal said that India was engaged in a "detailed exercise on how we can contribute" to the humanitarian effort in Iraq. It was in touch with a variety of international organisations that could facilitate this.

While analysts here note the signs of a more positive Indian approach towards a post-war Iraq, they suggest that New Delhi remains somewhat timid and tentative. They argue that India has no reason to limit itself to a narrow band of humanitarian assistance and could look boldly at a wider intervention ranging from building Iraqi civil society to the creation of new armed forces.

It is also being pointed out that India's stress on "multilateral" peace and reconstruction might be detracting from the immediate contributions India could make towards the regeneration of Iraq.

On his part, Mr. Sibal was upbeat on the new Iraq calling it "a great country, with a great future". Endowed with oil, water and a talented people, it could become a powerful force in the Middle East, he said.

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