SYDNEY, Jan 15: In a letter faxed yesterday from Sydney, over 250 peace groups, environment groups, non-governmental organizations and parliamentarians worldwide have called on the governments of India and Pakistan, to step back from the brink of a possible nuclear war.

In spite of a significant lessening in the tension between the two countries and statements and actions from Pakistan (in particular President Musharraf’s recent speech) that indicate that it is willing to clamp down on cross-border terrorist activity as demanded by India, the situation between the two nuclear-armed countries remains tense and potentially explosive, with no room for error.

Friends of the Earth Australia and anti-nuclear groups in India and Pakistan have coordinated the letter, which points out that nobody will gain from a conflict that could turn nuclear, and that no conceivable national interest of either country could possibly be served by such a conflict.

The letter asks that troops be moved back from the border and that transport links be restored. It asks that discussions be started to eliminate the risk of a nuclear exchange between the two countries, that a dialogue be commenced on Kashmir, and that there be discussions to produce lasting peace and stability in the region. According to the coordinator of the letter, Friends of the Earth nuclear weapons spokesperson John Hallam, “It is significant that at a time of tension between these two nuclear-armed rivals, over 250 major international organisations and parliamentarians have signed this letter at very short notice. We hope that it will have the desired effect in helping to calm the subcontinent.”

The letter has been signed by major international groups including Greenpeace International, Friends of the Earth International, and International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War; major national groups such as CND in the UK, and by members of the European Parliament, Canadian Parliament, Belgian Parliament, British Parliament and the Australian Parliament.

A large number of major Indian and Pakistani peace organisations also have signed the letter.