June 9, 2002	Sunday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 27,1423

TALLINN, June 8: US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld refused to be drawn on whether US diplomacy was succeeding to calm India-Pakistan tensions before being briefed on Saturday by Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage.

Armitage, fresh from meetings in India and Pakistan, was expected to arrive in the Baltic state of Estonia and provide Rumsfeld with an assessment of his talks in Islamabad and Delhi.

Rumsfeld, who held talks in Estonia with Nordic and Baltic defence ministers, is due to visit India and Pakistan next week to continue U.S. efforts to avert a war between the two states.

At a news conference after his talks with the Nordic and Baltic ministers, Rumsfeld declined to comment on India- Pakistan tensions.

“I think I prefer to wait until after I’ve had those briefings,” Rumsfeld said.

Asked if he had any early signs how successful Armitage’s meetings were in India and Pakistan, Rumsfeld replied: “I’ll know better after I meet with him this afternoon.”

Armitage has said he felt “very good” after talks with Indian officials, but the risk of war remained.

Fighting terrorism was the key issue discussed at the meeting of the Nordic and Baltic defence ministers, Sven Mikser, Estonia’s defence minister, said. They also discussed improving military capabilities and security cooperation in the region.

The three Baltic states, Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia, are hoping for entry into NATO.—Reuters