US says to keep up pressure on Pak

ON THE TERROR TRAIL

The US has tried to dehyphenate India from Pakistan, says Mulford.

The US will keep up its “non-stop” efforts to investigate the Mumbai attacks until the perpetrators are brought to book, the US has said.

US Ambassador David Mulford also said the US had tried to dehyphenate India from Pakistan as this was necessary for India to become a global power. Mulford, speaking at a farewell meet organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), echoed US Assistant Secretary of State Richard Boucher’s statement yesterday that the US would seek greater cooperation between investigative agencies probing the attacks. The gains of the peace process between India and Pakistan must not become a casualty of the current tensions between the neighbours, he added.

Meanwhile, in Mumbai, visiting Assistant Secretary of state Richard Boucher said, “If the United States is being attacked by a terrorist group, its response will be adequate according to the situation”. However, he refused to specify how the US would respond against the country whose soil was used for the attack.

“If Pakistan dismantles the infrastructure of terrorism on its own, it will be in everyone’s interest. Pakistan has realised the need to do so and the steps taken by it are promising. It seems Pakistan has understood the importance of wiping out the terror network from its soil and the steps taken by it like arresting and detaining a number of individuals, banning an organisation like Jamat-Ul-Dawa, etc, are an indication of this,” Boucher added.

In New Delhi, speaking about what the highlight of his tenure in India – the signing of the Indo-US nuclear deal – Mulford said the deal was driven by India’s energy needs as well as US President George Bush’s “vision for India’s membership of the global nuclear regime.”

While looking forward to competing in the Indian nuclear market in an equal and fair manner, he said the “letter of intent” by India to the US — to purchase reactors from US companies to generate 10,000 Mw of nuclear power — should be honoured. He also flagged the issue of India becoming a signatory to the Convention on Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage so that US companies could enter the Indian nuclear market.

India’s “cautious” regulatory mechanisms had insulated it from the current global economic crisis, said Mulford, adding that India was a major engine of global growth whose leadership role would be sought after in the future.

However, he called on India to further liberalise its financial and agricultural markets.

Speaking on the occasion, CII Chief Mentor Tarun Das said US-India relations had boomed, especially in defence and economy, and had entered a period a stability in the past five years where there had been “reverse investment” into the US from India too.

The incoming administration of US president-elect Barack Obama has requested Mulford to serve as Ambassador until February to see through the current crucial phase of diplomatic engagements in the Indian sub-continent.