NEW DELHI, Feb 4: Indian Foreign Minister Yashwant Sinha claimed on Tuesday that New Delhi's changed stance towards its neighbours had contributed to the success of the recent Saarc summit
, but he also warned that Pakistan's support for Kashmiri militants had boomeranged on Islamabad.
"Encouraging non-state actors, terrorists and other elements by providing sanctuary and support is not only violative of UN Security Council Resolution 1373 but can also boomerang on the countries who provide such support," Mr Sinha told a meeting where he discussed the outcome of the Islamabad summit.
"We have already seen several such examples in our immediate vicinity and it would be wise for everyone to learn from these developments. Mere denials will not suffice," Mr Sinha said in an apparent reference to the assassination attempts on President Gen Pervez Musharraf by suspected radical elements.
Mr Sinha stressed that an under-reported achievement of the 12th Saarc summit was its decision to initiate a study on advancing the deadline for a South Asian economic union from 2020 to 2015, including on a common currency.
"This was, in fact, an Indian proposal, which won prompt and quick support at the meeting of the Council of Ministers," Mr Sinha said.
He said although Saarc was formed in 1985, it was really in Islamabad that South Asia, as a region, "awakened to the benefits of regionalism and came together with a joint economic and social agenda to effectively help in the integration of our seven countries".
"The agreements and decisions of the summit represent a significant and innovative breakthrough in the process of establishing the inter-relationship between economic development through trade and integration, ending terror and violence and the elimination of poverty in our region," Mr Sinha said.
He said given the track record of Saarc, "the remarkable results achieved have come as a surprise to many people."
"The events of Sept 11, 2001, and the war against terrorism has acted as a major cementing factor between nations across the globe. These developments have contributed to the lessening of inter-state tensions in several parts of the world and we see the same happening in South Asia too.
"At the same time, the outcome of the Islamabad Summit is, equally, product of a slow but steady change in the "mindset" of our neighbours towards India. "This change, in turn, is to a large extent, the fruit of a conscious policy shift India has made towards the region as well as its perseverance in advocating the virtues of regionalism," Mr Sinha said.
He said the perception that India acted as the region's big brother in the manner of the Monroe Doctrine had changed.
It was felt that India's approach to Saarc was negative, Mr Sinha said. "Ever since its inception, we (are said to have) seen it as a forum for others to gang up against us. We are consumed by the fear that bilateral disputes will be dragged into Saarc and are convinced that each of our neighbours is conspiring to do so."
"Friends, irrespective of whether these charges have any substance or not, India, in the recent past, has travelled many miles to try and address each and every one of them," Mr Sinha said.
"India's proposal for an India-Pakistan-Iran common market could help link the region with Asean. "It must also be noted in this connection that the transport corridors India is creating to the east and the west not only link India but also South Asia and this entire region to the rest of the world. "Moreover, energy corridors that criss-cross the region are also likely to eventually become an integral part of such an economic space," Mr Sinha said.
India's contributions to the Islamabad summit should help dispel any doubts regarding its commitment to the Saarc process.
