India Ready For Adjustments On Kashmir, Says Gowda

Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda has said that New Delhi is prepared to discuss minor adjustments on Kashmir, The Khaleej Times daily reported yesterday.

In an interview with the English daily's editor S Nihal Singh, Deve Gowda said he was prepared to discuss minor adjustments in relation to Kashmir within the scope of the Simla agreement. The 45-minute interview, published on the front page of the newspaper, did not, however, elaborate what these minor adjustments were. The boundaries, the Prime Minister said, had been drawn by my predecessors in office but I am optimistic on beginning discussions with the new Pakistan government on trade, commerce and communication and other bilateral issues.

Gowda said he had been giving priority to India's neighbours in foreign policy, and his government had resolved resolving longstanding issues with Bangladesh and Nepal.

He said relations with China had improved and the president of China had visited India for the first time recently.

Ties with Russia were very close and he is tentatively planning to visit Moscow next month, Gowda said.

He did not want to get into speculation on Russia forming a counter-bloc including India to cope with US plans to expand Nato toward its borders.

He said he had received positive indications from the United States on the matter.

Both India and the US, as the world's two biggest democracies, should come closer together, Gowda said, and added that he had invited president Bill Clinton to visit India this year.

India enjoyed cordial relations with the Arabian gulf countries and the focus was on trade relationship, particularly in bilateral field. He said he was hoping to visit the gulf including the United Arab Emirates, in May.

Commenting on the political scene at home, he refuted reports of his less-than-happy relations with Congress president sitaram kesri saying he had visited the latter at his house eight times.

On the Bofors case, he said the old corruption cases were being investigated and were in the courts.

Gowda said he was not making any special effort in the matter because he was not interested in conducting a witch hunt. it is all past history, he said.

He said he did not want strained relations with either Congress or even the Bharatiya Janata Party.

The performance of his government compared favourably with single party governments in the past, he said.

He said he had received good feedback on his government's performance in the economic field in Davos and Rome but that he was very sorry that the problems such as poverty had not been resolved in 50 years of independence.