New Delhi, October 13, 2005
BUSH PRAISES INDIA
US President George W Bush praised Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for taking the initiative to help quake-hit Pakistan.
Bush called Manmohan Singh on Wednesday and conveyed his country's sympathies and condolences over hundreds of Indians killed in the devastating earthquake on Saturday, the White House said on Wednesday.
"The President (Bush) called Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to extend our condolences over those who lost their lives in the earthquake. It was also an opportunity for the President to get an update on the Indian relief efforts," White House spokesman Scott McClellan said in Washington.
"The President (Bush) praised Manmohan Singh for reaching out to Pakistan and offering assistance. The President also offered to support India's relief and recovery efforts, and noted that a USAID team is in India assessing needs and what help we might be able to provide," he added.
In a gesture of solidarity, India on Tuesday sent an Indian Air Force (IAF) plane carrying emergency relief supplies, including medicines, blankets and mattresses, to the quake-hit Pakistan.
Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf in a televised address to the nation on Wednesday specially thanked India for sending relief materials for victims of the massive earthquake that killed thousands in the country.
Meanwhile, India has told the US that it did not need the aid for relief efforts in areas of Jammu and Kashmir hit by the earthquake.
Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee, who is currently in West Bengal, said in Santiniketan that US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld had called him to inquire if India needed the US help for the quake relief work in Jammu and Kashmir.
Mukherjee, who was on his way to Kolkata from his native village of Miriti in Birbhum district, said he told Rumsfeld that he had visited the quake-hit areas and that there was no need for US aid at the moment.
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