Prime Minister of India - Dr. Manmohan Singh

PM's reply to the LS debate (rule 193) on foreign policy

Preliminary Parliament transcript of PM's reply to the debate on Foreign Policy in the Lok Sabha on 12th May 2004.

THE PRIME MINISTER (DR. MANMOHAN SINGH): Sir, I wish to thank all the distinguished Members who have commented on the suo motu Statement I had made on 20th April 2005 on our relations with China and Pakistan. There have been fresh developments since then in our external relations, which I will attempt to share with the House.

However, at the outset, let me express my deep satisfaction over the continuing and strong consensus that characterises the conduct of our Foreign Policy. This was reflected in the several observations made by the hon. Members cutting across the political spectrum.

Sir, there is unanimity in this House regarding the importance of our relations with China. As I said in my Statement, our Government attaches great importance to the development of our relations with China. There is great scope for expansion of our economic interaction with this great neighbour of ours. With regard to the resolution of the boundary question, I acknowledge the complexity of this issue. But in this context, the agreement we have reached with China, setting out the political parameters and guiding principles for the resolution of the boundary question, assumes considerable significance.

Overall, Sir, in the recent past, there has been steady forward movement in our bilateral relations which are now characterised by expanding areas of cooperation and growing mutual understanding. I do not look at our relations with China as those between rivals, but as between partners engaged in promoting peace, security and development in Asia and in the World as a whole.

Sir, Prof. Ram Gopal Yadav is not here. He made certain statements. I do recognise that we are dealing with issues, which have great contemporary significance. There are risks, but I think, these risks will not deter us from moving forward, though we shall do so mindful of all the elements that go to influence this complex situation which we have to deal with.

With regard to Pakistan, I am very glad that all Members have stressed the importance of the normalisation of our relations with Pakistan. We sincerely desire to find mutually acceptable solutions in all outstanding issues. The hon. Members have rightly emphasised the need for a complete cessation of cross border terrorism, including the dismantling of terrorist training camps and launch pads across the LOC.

I myself pointed out to President Musharraf that I will not be able to take Indian public opinion with me in carrying forward the current composite dialogue process and our quest for abiding peace, if there continue to be repeated terrorist acts against innocent men, women and children

We welcome the pledge made by President Musharraf not to allow terrorism to impede our bilateral peace process. Sir, both of us are committed to making the peace process truly irreversible, facilitating the resolution of all outstanding issues between our two countries. Of course, much will depend on the actual situation on the ground, with regard to cross-border infiltration, particularly after the snow-bound passes in Kashmir open up in summer. We have to remain alert because terrorist and extremist forces are still active. There will be no relaxation of vigil on this score.

Sir, thanks to the comprehensive security measures put in place, there have been no further incidents involving the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad bus service and the positive impact of the service on opinion on both sides of the Line Of Control (LOC) is there for everyone to see. We are already engaged in technical talks with the Government of Pakistan on the opening of a new bus service between Amritsar and Nankana Sahib. We hope to operationalise these services in the near future. I take note of the desire of hon. Member Shri Madhusudan Mistry about opening up the new routes linking Gujarat with Sind. This we shall also take up.

There has been some comment on the process initiated by the World Bank to appoint a neutral expert to examine differences between India and Pakistan on the Baglihar issue. There is no question of stopping work on this Project. Hon. Members should appreciate that under the terms of the Indus Water Treaty of 1960, the World Bank is obliged to appoint a neutral expert even if only one of the parties makes a representation. We had felt that a reference to the World Bank was premature because further technical discussions between our experts could have led to a narrowing of differences. I had myself conveyed to President Musharraf that if Pakistan could come up with convincing and technically verifiable objections to any aspect of this project, we would be willing to consider appropriate design modifications. We are now preparing to provide all the information and technical details that may be required by the neutral expert to make a comprehensive evaluation. I wish to state categorically that India has never violated the Indus Water Treaty, which has stood the test of time for the last 45 years. We intend to adhere to the Treaty in letter and in spirit.

Several Members have expressed anguish over the continuing detention of Indian fishermen and the other Indian citizens in Pakistan. Thanks to the effort of our Government and our Foreign Minister Shri Natwar Singh, a large number of these prisoners have been released and no effort is being spared to obtain the release of those remaining in Jails in Pakistan. We are also in touch with the Government of Pakistan on the release of fishing boats impounded by Pakistani authorities so that our fishermen can resume the earning of their livelihood.

With Bangladesh, we share traditional ties of friendship, reinforced by cultural and historic links. It remains our sincere desire to work with the Government and people of Bangladesh to tackle the basic common challenge of poverty, ignorance and disease. I take very seriously the point raised by Shri Hannan Mollah. We will make - and we have been making - sincere effort in this regard. We do have concerns regarding the territory of Bangladesh being used by Indian insurgent groups. However, I sincerely hope that our two countries can work together jointly to resolve these issues and promote jointly peace, security and development. Development is the biggest challenge that both of us face, and we must do so together to win the race against time

Sir, we have every reason to take pride in our excellent relations with the King and the people of Bhutan. The King of Bhutan is a wise monarch and under his guidance Bhutan has made rapid social and economic progress. We take pride in the accelerated development of Bhutan and we are very happy to be partners in their progress.

Sir, an hon. Member had made a reference to the situation in Nepal. We have a vital stake in the security and development of Nepal, with which we have centuries old ties of culture and civilisation. Our only concern is that Nepal should approach the new era of modernization with a strong commitment to the twin pillars of Nepal's nationhood, namely constitutional monarchy and multi-party democracy. As Nepal's neighbour, and in view of our special relationship, we do have concerns regarding the situation in that country. It is our sincere desire to find pathways to a future of co-operative interaction to promote peace, security and the well-being of the people of Nepal.

We have been steadfast in our traditional strong commitment to the unity and integrity of Sri Lanka. We do hope that through meaningful negotiations all sections of Sri Lankan society, including the Tamil minority, will be able to evolve durable co-operative structures which enable them to lead a life of dignity and self-respect.

Mr. Deputy-Speaker, Sir, South Asia must work together to emerge as a major powerhouse of economic creativity and enterprise. For that, it is very essential for all our countries to work together to maintain cordial relations with each other. It is with this perspective that we have extended our hand of friendship and co-operation to all our neighbours.

April has been an extraordinarily intense period for our external relations. Following my last suo motu statement, we have played host to Prime Minister Koizumi of Japan and the UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. Another landmark event was the celebrations of the 50th Anniversary of the Afro-Asian Conference in Jakarta and Bandung in Indonesia from April 22 to April 24, 2005. I have also just returned from Moscow, where I participated in the commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the victory over Fascism and Nazis. I used this opportunity to review with President Putin the state of our multifaceted bilateral relations. Both of us agreed to work together to expand areas of co-operation consistent with our strategic partnership.

Sir, our relations with the United States of America have never been better. The two countries are poised for a major and significant upgradation of these relations in the days to come. I had the opportunity to exchange views with President George Bush both when we met in New York last September and when we saw each other in Moscow earlier last week. During the External Affairs Minister's visit to Washington, an India-US Energy Panel was announced which will enable the two countries to embark on a long-term plan for energy co-operation, including the possibility of civilian nuclear energy co-operation

Both in the US as well as in other countries, there is a growing recognition of the fact that global energy sources are under increasing strain and that high oil prices are probably here to stay. For countries like India, to sustain the reasonably high rate of economic growth that is required to eradicate poverty, energy cannot be allowed to become a constraint. For us, nuclear energy is an important means to address this challenge. As such, we intend to maintain and expand our indigenous nuclear power programme. This would also ease the strain on conventional energy supplies globally. Since India's record on non-proliferation is impeccable and acknowledged to be so internationally, the current restrictions on co-operation in nuclear power production with India have become anachronistic and counter-productive. During my meeting with President Putin in Moscow, I expressed satisfaction at India-Russia co-operation in this field, as well as in other areas of bilateral concern and hoped that areas of co-operation between India and Russia would grow in the years to come. I would be visiting Washington at the invitation of President Bush in July this year, when I intend to continue our dialogue on energy co-operation, which we also touched upon during our brief meeting in Moscow.

The visit of Prime Minister Koizumi to India in April 28 and 29 marked the beginning of a sustained and productive engagement between our two countries. Despite the close political relations and shared values of democracy and culture, India-Japan economic relations have remained far below their potential. It is this aspect of our relations that received the greatest attention during the visit and I am happy to say that we took a number of decisions to upgrade our relations. Japan has agreed to consider assisting us in establishing a high-speed rail freight corridor between Mumbai and Delhi and Delhi and Kolkata. Japan would also extend facilities for Japanese language training in Indian educational institutions to help our IT industry serve the large and growing software market in Japan.

Hon. Members would recall the historic contribution made by the Afro-Asian Conference of 1955 in hastening the end of colonialism, forging a sense of solidarity among the newly emerging nation states of Asia and Africa and in paving the way for establishment of the Non-Aligned Movement. The key role played by Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru in that Meeting fifty years ago was acknowledged in my meetings with several leaders during this Conference. India was given the signal honour to speak on behalf of the Asian countries and our voice was heard with respect by the extraordinary gathering of leaders from all over the world. Sir, It would not be an exaggeration to say that the Conference has rekindled the sense of solidarity and close affinity among the developing nations with a keen determination to translate these sentiments into a practical programme of co-operation, leveraging each other's strengths and using our considerable collective bargaining power to usher in a more equitable international political and economic order.

Sir, I urged the leaders present to devise instrumentalities to deal with imbalances built into the functioning of the international political and economic order, to expand the constituency supporting the process of globalisation. I drew attention to the fact that we have our own distinct perspective on measures to combat international terrorism, which has emerged as a major global problem. This perspective is based on the need to initiate and sustain a meaningful "dialogue among civilisations" instead of subscribing to the theory of the so-called "clash of civilisations".

My meetings with Asian leaders in Bandung also gave me yet another opportunity to reiterate India's commitment to the 'Look East Policy' and to closer relations with the countries of South-East and East Asia. We are committed to work with ASEAN and with East Asian Countries to make the 21st century a truly Asian Century.

Sir, I am happy to report to the House that the countries of this region reciprocated this sentiment when they decided to invite India to the East Asian Summit to be held later this year. We are also making determined efforts to intensify our cooperation with the developing countries of West Asia, Central Asia, Africa and Latin America.

We have also moved forward in rejuvenating our relations with the European Union through our new "strategic partnership". The forthcoming visit in September of Prime Minister Tony Blair as President of the European Union will provide us another opportunity to give concrete meaning and content to our strategic partnership with both the EU and the United Kingdom.

I also look forward to the opportunity to participate in an outreach meeting of the G-8 at Gleneagles in Scotland this July. This will help strengthen our interaction with our global partners. India's participation in this meeting is an important recognition of our place in the global community and the world economy as a whole.

This brings me to India's efforts, in close collaboration with other friendly countries, to bring about a comprehensive reform of the United Nations. The visit to India by UN Secretary General Kofi Anan, on April 25 and 26, 2005, provided us an opportunity to review current developments at the United Nations and to reassess our strategy. The Group of 4, comprising of India, Brazil, Germany and Japan, continue to work very closely together in pursuit of our shared objective of mobilizing a more than two-thirds majority of the UN General Assembly, in favour of a significant restructuring of the United Nations, including the Security Council. We believe that India, with its large population, dynamic economy, long history of contribution to international peace-keeping and other regional and international causes, deserves to be a permanent member of the UN Security Council. We also believe that reform of the UN should make it more democratic and more capable of effective multilateral decision-making and action.

Of course, we are conscious of the fact that the situation is extremely complex and there is resistance to change among several powerful countries. However, this is the first time in many years that a certain momentum has been built up for thoroughgoing reform of the United Nations. It is a window of opportunity we must make every effort to take advantage of as developing countries.

Hon. Members, we are living in a world that is undergoing rapid transformation, with new challenges emerging daily and demanding attention. India's own emergence as an economic power house has expanded our circle of interaction and engagement with the rest of the world. For us, the main challenge of our foreign policy lies in creating and in maintaining a regional and international environment which would enable us to sustain a high rate of economic growth, create more opportunities for Indian entrepreneurship and enable India to realize its vast, latent potential as a major economic power in the world. Consequently, in the past year, our Government has given the utmost priority to our relations with our neighbours, in particular our relations with China and Pakistan. We have focused our attention on economic diplomacy, with a particular emphasis on energy diplomacy. Our search for energy resources has led us to make large investments in countries as far as Sudan and exploration in Central Asia. Politics and economies must now go hand in hand in the service of India's overall interests as a nation.

Sir, let me pledge that while we remain faithful to the abiding principles of foreign policy laid down by Jawaharlal Nehru and followed consistently by our country since then during the past half a century and more, we are, nevertheless, alert to the compulsions imposed upon us by a rapidly transforming world order and we have the capacity, capability as a nation to respond successfully to the newly emerging challenges that confront us. It is a tribute to India's high standing in the world today that our country has emerged as a compulsory destination for world leaders from across the globe. This image of India as a confident and united nation derives greatly from the continuing political consensus that has all along been the hallmark of our foreign policy.

Sir, I do believe that it is also a recognition of what India has come to stand for in the comity of nations. Our steadfast commitment to democracy, to building a multi-ethnic, multi-religious, multi-lingual, multi-cultural democracy based on respect for fundamental human rights and the rule of law gives us a unique place in our era. All nations of the world, I believe, will one day function on these very principles of liberal and pluralistic democracy. This enjoins upon us the obligation to nurture these roots of our nationhood. I commit our Government to work earnestly to realise this vision of India's tryst with destiny.

I would like, once again, to thank this House, Mr. Deputy-Speaker, Sir, for extending to me as Prime Minister of this great nation its whole-hearted support and guidance in representing India on the world stage.

Thank you.