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ISLAMABAD, Jan 25: Foreign Minister Abdul Sattar on Friday termed India’s missile test as “unwarranted and unwise” for being conducted at a time of heightened tension.
“Apart from being wistful and unwarranted, the ballistic missile firing by India is bound to be considered unwise... at a time that is very tense,” he told CNN in its live programme “Q&A”.
Sattar said, the test came at a time when more than a million troops have been concentrated by India on Pakistan’s borders and the world leaders had been spending lot of time and efforts to begin the process of de-escalation. To a question, he said the fact that India gave notice does not minimize the importance or threats implicit in the test at this difficult time.
About the timing of the test, he said, “had wisdom prevailed India could have and should have done what we did.”
Pakistan, he said, deferred and postponed the testing of “Shaheen” missile, taking into account the “provocative implication of the test at this time.
Responding to a question, the minister said, the Government of Pakistan has decided that it would not be provoked into responding to the Indian test.
Because, he said by doing so, “we will fall in Indian way of dealing with the situation that is adding provocation, adding the threat on the border, adding tension to tension.”
“We will wait for the return of degree of normalcy and if at that time it is necessary we will carry out a test,” he added.
Commenting on Vajpayee’s statement that the test is for the protection of India, Sattar said, at this time there was great restraint on the part of all major states as they were not conducting or carrying out tests of this kind.
Answering another question on the allegation of continued “infiltration”, Sattar said Pakistan has suggested to India and to the UN secretary-general, to activate the “Verification mechanism” that already existed.
“If India is sure of its facts, it should not hesitate to submit its allegations to verification of the UN military observers in Kashmir,” he said.
HE SAID: “If you ask the Kashmiris, they will tell you 75,000 have been killed by Indian armed forces and the people buried in the graveyards of the Indian-held Kashmir are Kashmiris and not people who have been infiltrated from outside.”
Responding to a question about the list of 20 “suspects” by India, Abdul Sattar said the interior ministry and the provinces were checking their names and, if found to be in Pakistan “then we can proceed further.” But, the minister added, extradition was a legal process and it had to be based on existing agreement between the two countries.
“We have no interests whatsoever in keeping Indian criminals on Pakistan territory. We would like to establish a framework to deal with such cases.” To a question, he said, Pakistan has absolutely clear views about the Dec 13 attack on the Indian parliament.
“We have condemned the attack, extended condolence and sympathy to the Indian government.” Pakistan, he said, has offered to participate in an objective inquiry to determine the facts of the case and “if the Indian allegation are, upon investigation, found to have merit we can go further.”
Sattar said we have also a large number of cases of persons who were trained by India for acts of terrorism and subsequently they have gone back from Pakistan, perhaps to India or other places.—APP
