NEW DELHI, April 23: Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee reiterated on Wednesday that Pakistan can “open the doors for talks” on Kashmir by ending the “infiltration” of militants into the held state.
“Stopping cross-border infiltration and destruction of terrorist infrastructure can open doors for talks. Talks can take place on all issues, including that of Jammu and Kashmir,” he told the Lok Sabha.
“The gun cannot solve problems; brotherhood can. Issues can be resolved if we move forward guided by the three principles of Insaaniyat (humanism), Jamhooriyat (democracy) and Kashmirayat (Kashmir’s age-old legacy of Hindu-Muslim amity),” Mr Vajpayee said.
“I said that we have extended our hand of friendship. Let us see how Pakistan responds to this,” Mr Vajpayee said.
Mr Vajpayee also referred to his speech at a rally in Srinagar in which he had said “...this hand of friendship should be extended by both sides. Both sides should resolve that we need to live together in peace”.
Deputy Prime Minister Lal Krishan Advani, meanwhile told the Rajya Sabha that President Pervez Musharraf was obdurate which led to a failed Agra summit.
Mr Advani said India was still willing to respond on the issue of resumption of dialogue “if Islamabad abandoned cross-border terrorism and dismantled terrorist infrastructure.”
Zee News channel quoted him as saying: “Let them abandon the path of terrorism and dismantle terrorist infrastructure. I am sure not only India, the Government of India and people are willing to respond.”
“The Pakistani president’s failure of vision enabled India to beat him up with the stick of cross-border terrorism,” Mr Advani said.
Junior foreign minister Digvijay Singh in a written answer in the Lok Sabha said the United States could play a role in normalizing ties between Pakistan and India by applying more pressure on Islamabad to curb alleged cross-border terrorism.
Digvijay Singh said that the United States could contribute to preventing escalation of tensions in the South Asian region by pressing on Pakistan to stop sponsoring and supporting “cross-border terrorism” against India.
Mr Singh said this could be done in accordance with commitments made by Pakistan in June last year and in the context of the global war against terrorism.
“The international community, including the United States, was aware of New Delhi’s consistent position that all issues between India and Pakistan can be resolved only through direct bilateral dialogue,” he said.
