Thursday, September 12, 2002
India questions Iraq strike
S. Rajagopalan New York, September 12
India has made clear to the United States that it will not support any unilateral military action against Iraq, but will fully back any fresh moves by the United Nations to force Baghdad to comply with its mandate on weapons inspections.
Two days ahead of the UN General Assembly session, where US President George W Bush is slated to make out a strong case for action against Iraq, External Affairs Minister Yashwant Sinha set out the Indian position in clear terms. Before leaving for New York, Sinha told an interactive session at the Brookings Institution in Washington on Tuesday that if the UN were to come up with any new guidelines on weapon inspections, India would support the move.
Sinha, replying to a question from former Congressman Stephen Solarz, also spoke of the need for "credible evidence" that Iraq is in possession of weapons of mass destruction.
The minister is believed to have articulated the Indian position during his discussions with Secretary of State Colin Powell.
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