Hostility with Pakistan cited as success

Hostility with Pakistan cited as success
October 2002

Times of India

Improving bilateral relations with other countries might be considered a tenet of any country’s foreign policy but when it comes to the Union government, it is hostility with Pakistan that is cited as a success.

Or at least that’s what the booklet, ‘Milestones of Success’, brought out by the information and broadcasting ministry on the occasion of the NDA government’s completion of three years suggests.

While the 15 points listed as successes in the area of external affairs focus mainly on agreements and meetings with various countries, in the case of Pakistan this is what it has to say: After mentioning the composite dialogue in 1998 and Vajpayee’s Lahore yatra of 1999 comes Musharraf’s visit to Agra. Even if one does not ask
whether Agra should be listed as a success or a failure, what follows is even more surprising.

”Pakistan, however, responded with hostility, confrontation and continued cross-border terrorism” the government states, apparently taking the entire credit for Pakistan’s inimical approach.

In case doubting Thomases credit Islamabad on the assumption that Pakistan’s hostile policy might be of its own making rather than an ‘achievement’ of Indian foreign policy, the next paragraph goes on to mention specific ‘milestones of success’: “India’s High Commissioner recalled from Islamabad, Samjhouta Express, Delhi-Lahore-Delhi bus service terminated, strength of High Commission in Pakistan reduced by 50 per cent, all over-flight facilities to Pakistan suspended from 1 January, 2002. Pakistan asked to recall High Commissioner in New Delhi.”

Given the government’s oft-repeated claim of its desire to have friendly relations with Pakistan, this list may well be considered a Freudian slip.

Against such major ‘successes’, the other points mentioned pale into insignificance, but, merely for the record, they include: high level political exchanges with China including talks on demarcation of the border, a hydel project for Bhutan, $ 100 million assistance for Afghanistan, lifting of sanctions by Japan and the US, agreements signed with Russia, increased cooperation with the US in the areas of counter-terrorism, defence, science and technology.

Also listed is the extension of the ban on the LTTE though the home ministry might quibble about the classification in the MEA’s kitty.

Another mention is that of the India-EU summits of 2000 and 2001, which is just as well since the summit would have to be left out of next year’s booklet after this year’s public relations disaster.