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Kashmir is 'integral part of India'

In a clear enunciation of his government's policy, External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh today described Kashmir as an 'integral part of India,' but said the government was willing to enter into a dialogue with Pakistan on all issues, 'without any preconditions'.

Addressing the United Nations General Assembly on behalf of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee who failed to turn up because of his preoccupation with the general election, Jaswant Singh said, ''The path of the India-Pakistan composite dialogue process is open. No preconditions attend to it. The only essential ingredient that remains is an abjuring of violence and cross-border terrorism.''

He highlighted India's unique concept of 'openness and unity,' of which, he said, the 'Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part,' and 'shall remain so,' thus debunking Pakistan's territorial claim over the region.

''Because this is not any territorial dispute, it is the assertion of two antipodal approaches to national identity. India has represented denominational nationhood, it is civic nationalism to which we subscribe. This way Jammu and Kashmir is not the so-called core issue, it is at the very core of Indian nationhood,'' he said.

He criticised Pakistan while expressing disappointment at its 'compulsive hostility' and calling it an ''aberration in our region today where all other SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) countries are at peace with each other, and trying, bilaterally and through the SAARC mechanisms, to tackle together the great challenge of development.''

He, however, said, ''We remain unshaken in our vision of cooperation and shared prosperity of the south Asian region, as embedded in the charter of the SAARC, also our faith in the ability, talent and will of the people of the region to take their rightful place in the world community.''

The other issues on which he spoke included India's stand on the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, threat of terrorism and the reorganisation of the Security Council, the policy-making body of the United Nations.

He also referred to Vajpayee's declaration in the United Nations last year that India was engaged in the discussions on a range of issues including CTBT.

He said these ''discussions were in process and would be resumed by the newly-elected government. Our position remains consistent.

''We remain ready to bring these discussions to a successful conclusion. Naturally, this requires the creation of a positive environment as we work towards creating the widest possible consensus domestically.

''We also expect that other countries shall adhere to this treaty without any conditions,'' he added.

As for the Fissile Material Cut-Off Treaty, he said notwithstanding India's readiness to engage in constructive negotiations on it, the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva had so far sadly been unable to register any forward movement.

He spoke at length about the problem of cross-border terrorism and said international consensus against this menace should be strengthened.

''India has given a call for a comprehensive international convention against terrorism and we hope to make progress on this issue in this session of the General Assembly,'' he added.

Before concluding this speech, he wanted the world body to address in the next decade the most urgent problems that faced the world.

He said the General Assembly should consider the following areas for action in the opening years of the next decade: an international conference on financing for development, irreversible steps to reduce the dangers of use of nuclear weapons, reforms and expansion of the UN Security Council, a comprehensive convention against terrorism and strengthening of the UN development system in the era of globalisation.

''This, too, is something to ponder over for we all know that an FMCT can only contribute to our shared objective as part of a step-by-step process. Let us then overcome this reluctance and agree to look beyond the FMCT.''

The minister also referred to the Kargil conflict which he described as 'an act of premeditated aggression' at a time when Vajpayee extended a ''hand of peace, amity and cooperation to neighbouring Pakistan, hoping yet again to set aside the sterility of relations of the past half century and set the south Asian sub-continent on the path of development with a view to addressing the real adversary of our region -- poverty, want and hunger.''

''This act of faith was betrayed. A premeditated aggression by regular forces was committed against India. Not simply was the Lahore Declaration violated, but also the Simla agreement, which had prevented conflict for more than a quarter of a century.

''In self-defence, yet with utmost restraint, India took all necessary and appropriate steps to evict the forces from its territory. Most regrettably, this aggression has set back the Lahore process of peace that we had initiated, for whereas aggression over territory can more easily be vacated, that territory of trust which has been transgressed is infinitely more difficult to restore,'' he said.

UNI

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