Following the Terrorist Attack last week in South Mumbai the Outgoing President of USA, George Bush rushed outgoing Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice to India and Pakistan
She flew into New Delhi for a Day, yesterday, offered her condolence and made some right noises that Pakistan would have to urgently address the situation and fully work in a transperant manner to bring the perpetrators to justice… firmly asserting that Pakistan will have to take responsibility for even those Non State Actors who are acting from their Soil
She then flew to Pakistan, and it was not really totally unexpected, and softened her stand… probably being bluntly told by our neighbour to choose between continuing the US War on Terror through Pakistan or Aggressively Support India !… What option had she really but to tone down her rhetoric ! USA will not put India’s Interests before it’s own…. even if it’s a Common Enemy we are both Fighting
With Growing Outrage in India on this Mumbai Terrorist Attack demanding and exerting pressure on the Indian Government that our Reaction be Big and Swift and Telling, atleast for now the Indo Pak Peace Process is Dead… this is exactly what fanatic hardliners in both countries wanted in the first place
As Tensions escalate,one can expect, Mr Obama, the incoming President of USA and his Secretary of State, also a woman, Hillary Clinton, to also fly to the sub-continent…it’s a tough and volatile situation, unprecedented in many ways
Pakistan wants evidence…but as our ex High Commissioner to Pakistan, Mr Parthasarthy so succinctly put it on a TV Debate last night on ‘Times Now’ “I’m not going to give evidence of the Burglary to the Burglars !”… He further went on to assert that whatever evidence that Pakistan needs is there in Pakistan itself in the Newsletters of the various Militant Groups… Even if token banned in Pakistan, these groups and their leaders operate openly under different names from Pakistan soil… Their leaders boast in print that it was they who had masterminded and mounted Terrorist Strikes in India, including the one on the Indian Parliament…. in fact Pakistan Diplomats in the United Nations and even Pakistan Legislators in their Senate are on record acknowledging these Groups as being responsible for Terrorist Strikes in India
A Pakistan Senator in Islamabad and a leading Pakistani Journalist in London, who were part of the Debate on ‘Times Now’, preferred not to counter Mr Parthasarthy on these facts but kept on harping on Evidence not being provided for any Pakistani Links
As was only to be expected, however shocking, Pakistan activated it’s propoganda machine and we had several Pakistan TV Channels repeatedly churning out conspiracy theories and blaming the Terrorist Attack on South Mumbai on Hindu Zionists !
Indo-Pak Peace Process R.I.P