India, Pak firm on gas pipeline Rajeev Sharma Tribune News Service
New Delhi, April 4 India and Pakistan today decided to pursue the Iran-Pakistan-India gas pipeline project for its successful completion — a development of huge political and diplomatic significance which is bound to have a negative fallout on the Indo-US nuclear deal.
This was decided at a bilateral meeting between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Pakistani counterpart Shaukat Aziz on the margins of the 14th Saarc summit. The two Prime Ministers devoted much of their time in their 50-minute talks on the Iran pipeline.
Singh and Aziz decided to go ahead with the project and felt that the price mechanism, which has been a major concern for India particularly, could be sorted out. The two Prime Ministers also expressed satisfaction over the progress so far made in the technical-level talks among the three sides.
The two neighbours' decision to go ahead with the Iran pipeline is the second rebuff to the Americans in as many days, after the 14th Saarc summit approved an Iranian application for observer status in the regional grouping. The decision would help Iran to come out of its isolation ward, which the West did not want to happen.
The development has implications for the UPA government too as the Left Front has consistently been pressuring the government for going ahead with the Iran pipeline. It also means that India is ready to pursue its independent foreign policy in the larger national interest rather than being dictated by such overwhelming considerations as a civilian nuclear cooperation deal with the US. The Indo-US nuclear deal would receive a severe setback with this decision.
The other important issue that came up during the Singh-Aziz meeting was the Samjhauta Express link train blasts. Aziz wanted to know what was happening in the investigations. He again suggested joint investigation into the train blasts. Singh, however, politely turned down the joint investigation request and assured him that India would share investigation results with Pakistan.
Aziz also raised the issue of 570 Pakistani prisoners who are lodged in Indian jails currently. He wanted their cases to be expedited. Singh assured that a case-by-case review would be undertaken. Many of these 570 prisoners are accused of serious charges like terrorism.
Aziz congratulated the Indian Prime Minister for hosting the Saarc summit and said it marked an important milestone in the Saarc process for regional cooperation.
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