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| 17 March 2004 | Wednesday | 25 Muharram 1425 |
Infiltration reduced significantly: Powell
NEW DELHI, March 16: US Secretary of State Colin Powell told India on Tuesday Washington had not taken a final decision on the supply of F-16 warplanes to Pakistan even as he promised to press President Pervez Musharraf to plug all avenues of nuclear proliferation.
Mr Powell noted that there had been a significant reduction in infiltration in Jammu and Kashmir and said he would impress upon President Musharraf, when they meet later this week, about the need to "dismantle terrorist camps in the interest of India-Pakistan peace process".
"Cross-border activity has come down significantly...We are closely watching the situation. I will be talking to Gen Musharraf on dismantling of terrorist camps. Cross-border activity should not only cease in winters but also in summers," Mr Powell said.
He was addressing a joint press conference with Indian Foreign Minister Yashwant Sinha after delegation-level talks between the two leaders. Eliminating cross-border activity was one of the essential elements of the eight issues identified in the Jan 6 Islamabad declaration after the Indian prime minister's visit, he recalled.
Sharing India's concern over the threat of weapons of mass destruction falling into the hands of non-state actors, Mr Powell said he would ask President Musharraf to ensure that there was no recurrence of incidents of clandestine sale of nuclear technology.
Expressing concern over the recent scandal involving Pakistan's top nuclear scientist, Dr A.Q. Khan, he said: "We are pleased that his (Dr Khan) network has been broken up...I will speak about it with Gen Musharraf. We will not be satisfied until the entire network is gone."
Replying to a question, he said no decision had been taken by the Bush administration to supply sophisticated F-16 fighter planes to Pakistan as part of a military package.
Mr Sinha said his discussions with Mr Powell were mainly focused on bilateral economic ties, including trade, investment and technology. Officials of the two countries would meet next month to lay a roadmap with milestones for enhancing the bilateral ties, he added.
He said the two countries had decided not to allow the controversy over outsourcing of jobs or any other issues to affect their ties. Mr Powell arrived on Monday night on the first leg of his South Asia tour that will also take him to Pakistan and Afghanistan. He met the Leader of the Opposition, Sonia Gandhi, in the morning before going into talks with Mr Sinha.
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