Singh sees ‘some hope’ in ties with Pakistan

NEW DEHLI: Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said on Tuesday that there was “some hope” that Pakistan would crack down on militant activity targeting India following talks between the two countries.

The comments came after Pakistan and India announced last weekend they would fight terrorism together and cooperate on bringing to justice those responsible for the 2008 Mumbai attacks that left 166 people dead.

“I think there is some hope,” Singh told reporters accompanying him aboard a plane carrying him back to India after attending the G20 summit in Toronto.

“In dealing with Pakistan our attitude has to be - trust - trust but verify,” Singh said, according to a transcript of his comments sent to AFP by the foreign ministry.

“So only time will tell which way the animal will turn,” Singh said.

Indian Home Minister P Chidambaram and his Pakistani counterpart Rehman Malik met last weekend and announced they would develop a common anti-terrorism strategy. Chidambaram held talks with Malik in Islamabad on June 25 and pressed for a “visible” outcome in Pakistan’s action against terrorism directed against India. Chidambaram had stressed that India wanted all those behind the Mumbai attacks punished. Chidambaram specifically mentioned Jamaat ud Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed  against whom India wants urgent action. On Monday, Singh had pressed US President Barack Obama to convince Pakistan to take strong action against terrorists involved in anti-India activities following disclosures made by LeT operative David Headley.

Singh, who met Obama on the sidelines of the G20 summit, briefed him about the peace initiatives with Pakistan but made it clear that Islamabad should abide by its commitment of not allowing terrorism emanating from its soil to be directed against India.

Pakistan and India have embarked on a tentative reconciliation process since relations crashed to a new low after gunmen went on a rampage in Mumbai in November 2008.

Delhi blames the attack on the Pakistan-based group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and wants more action from Islamabad to bring the masterminds to justice.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 30^th, 2010.