PM says Qureshi could have handled press conference better

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the Prime Minister of United Kingdom, David Cameron at the Joint Press Conference, in New Delhi on July 29, 2010.

In his first comments on the July 15 talks between the Foreign Ministers of India and Pakistan in Islamabad, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi could have handled the press conference at the end of the talks better.

"I think the way the press conference was handled at the end of the visit could have been avoided because it detracts from the large element of agreements reached between the two Foreign Ministers," Dr Singh said at a joint press interaction with visiting British Prime Minister David Cameron here this evening.

Dr Singh said it was too close to the event to pass a firm judgement on whether the talks between External Affairs Minister S M Krishna and Mr Qureshi were a success or a failure.

"I believe there was agreement on a large number of issues having a bearing on our relations," he said.

He hoped that Mr Qureshi will take up the invitation extended to him by Mr Krishna to visit India later this year to continue the process so that, "sooner or later", the two countries could restore the dialogue between them.

Earlier, in reply to a question, Dr Singh said that, after 9/11, the world community had recognisd that terrorism constituted a very important threat to all civilised societies. He also stated that no cause was good enough to justify terrorism.

He sincerely hoped that the Government of Pakistan would honour the commitments it had made to him and his predecessors that Pakistani territory would not be allowed to be used for acts of terrorism directed against India.

"We believe that Pakistan should be as sincere in paying attention to terrorism on its eastern borders as it is on its western borders," he said.

He also hoped that the world community would use its good offices to promote this cause.

Mr Cameron said the world had seen the threat and the reality of terrorism emanating from Pakistan in Mumbai, London and in Afghanistan.

He said the existence of terrorist groups in Pakistan was not acceptable and promised to work with the Government of Pakistan to encourage it to crack down on such groups.

Mr Cameron said he agreed with Dr Singh that "terrorism cannot be right". He said the United Kingdom wanted to have the strongest possible security partnership with India.

He said the UK also wanted Pakistan to take the strongest possible against terrorist groups in its territory.

He acknowledged that the Government of Pakistan had taken some steps in this direction but had to be encouraged to do even more.

NNN