Sets minimum pre-condition for Indo-Pak talks

US President Barack Obama today pushed for an Indo-Pak dialogue process but Prime Minister Manmohan Singh made it clear that a “minimum pre-condition” for it was that Pakistan should not allow its soil to be used to promote terrorism.

Obama and Singh had their first substantive discussion on the sidelines of the G20 summit here and both described the talks as constructive and useful. They spoke warmly about each other with Obama calling the Indian leader “a very wise and decent man”. Shortly after their discussion, Obama told a press conference they had discussed terrorism emanating not only from Pakistan but also from Afghanistan. Obama also went on to suggest that “it may make sense to create an effective dialogue between India and Pakistan in this nuclear age and at a time when perhaps the greatest enemy” of the two countries should be poverty.

At a separate press conference after his meeting with Obama, Singh told a Pakistani journalist that his country had an opportunity to assure the world that it was absolutely sincere to ensure that Pakistani soil would not be allowed to be used to promote terrorism.

“This is a minimum pre-condition” for resumption of discussions, the prime minister asserted. Singh said his first meeting with Obama was marked by “exceptional warmth and cordiality” and that issues they had covered included the threat posed to all free societies from terrorism emanating from India’s neighbourhood. He and Obama had discussed international efforts required to deal with the problem of terrorism emanating from India’s neighbourhood, Singh said, adding “we had a significant convergence of views and approaches in this regard”.