Summit connects India, Pakistan leaders

By Paul Watson
Los Angeles Times

E-mail this article Print this article Search archive

But Vajpayee kept his hosts guessing whether he would agree to one-on-one discussions with either Pakistani Prime Minister Zafarullah Khan Jamali or President Pervez Musharraf during the seven-nation South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation conference that began today.

Jamali clasped Vajpayee's hand tightly as both leaders smiled broadly for the cameras after the Indian prime minister, who at 78 suffers a leg ailment, walked haltingly from an Indian Air Force passenger jet and past an Pakistani honor guard.

Pakistani Foreign Minister Khursheed Mahmood Kasuri said that he did not know of any agreement by Vajpayee to hold talks with Musharraf or Jamali during the conference, which is expected to focus on free trade and counterterrorism.

"It takes two to tango," Kasuri said. "If you need peace in south Asia, you need a peace partner. Pakistan is ready, but we need a partner and that partner can only appear on the scene when we start talking and have a dialogue."

Before leaving New Delhi, Vajpayee said he would not have any bilateral talks with Pakistani leaders. "We want to give our undivided attention and energy to the success of (the conference). "Its success will help the resolution of other problems."

Vajpayee said at he would "interact" with his hosts, but he ruled out any "meaningful discussions."

Musharraf and Vajpayee last held direct talks at a failed 2001 summit in the Indian city of Agra, near the Taj Mahal. Their foreign ministers had agreed to a communiqué, that was expected to bring about formal talks, but the summit collapsed without agreement at the last minute.

Vajpayee left Agra feeling cheated by Musharraf, whose underlings accused Vajpayee's hard-line Deputy Prime Minister Lal Krishna Advani of scuttling any deal.

India and Pakistan have fought three wars, and countless border skirmishes, since they gained independence from Britain in 1947. The nuclear-armed neighbors almost went to war again following a December 2001 terrorist attack on India's Parliament buildings that left 15 people dead, including the five attackers. India accused Pakistan of masterminding the assault, which Pakistan denied.

After massing around 1 million troops on their borders, and the front line dividing disputed Kashmir, both sides pulled back from the brink, largely under pressure from Washington, D.C.

Last month, Vajpayee accepted Jamali's offer of a cease-fire, but Indian authorities say militants continue to cross the Line of Control dividing Kashmir, despite Musharraf's promises that Pakistan will no longer be a base for insurgents to attack its neighbors.

Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company