[MAPC-discuss] Arming India (fwd)

[MAPC-discuss] Arming India (fwd)

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2001-11-07

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Tue, 06 Nov 2001 07:29:21 -0600

US to resume defence supplies to India

                  TIMES NEWS NETWORK

                       NEW DELHI: The US has agreed to resume defence
                       supplies to India and asked New Delhi to send its
                       requirements to work out the details.

                  The assurance about defence supplies was given by US
                  defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld during his two-hour
talks
                  with defence minister George Fernandes here Monday.

                  Defence ministry officials said the specifics and details
of
the
                  supplies would be decided later. Defence supplies have
been
                  frozen since the Pokhran-II tests.

                  Rumsfeld, here on a brief working visit after a trip to
Islamabad,
                  said Indo-US military-to-military ties were poised to take
a
big
                  leap forward. The Indo-US defence ties would be sharply
                  boosted in the coming days, with US under-secretary of
                  defence for policy Douglas Feith and Pacific Command chief
                  Admiral Dennis Blair scheduled to visit New Delhi soon.

                  During a joint news conference after the talks, Fernandes,
                  whom Rumsfeld invited to visit the US, said the two
countries
                  looked forward to establishing a long-lasting strategic
                  relationship. "We discussed some specifics about our
defence
                  partnership, including certain items we need to acquire
and
                  collaborations we can have," he said. He did not
elaborate.

                  During the talks, the issue of US sanctions also came up.
                  Rumsfeld said the US state department and the Indian
                  government would soon discuss "the status" of the few
                  remaining sanctions still in place against New Delhi,
imposed
                  after the 1998 nuclear tests, which deal with prohibitions
                  against technology transfer in the nuclear and missile
                  programmes.

                  The US also reassured India that its war against terrorism
was
                  indeed going to be a global one, with the Taliban, bin
Laden
                  and his Al-Qaida network being the clear and present
targets
                  at the moment.

                  Though Rumsfeld deftly side-stepped specific questions on
                  Pakistan's role in abetting cross-border terrorism in
India,
he
                  emphasised the US efforts would target terrorist networks
                  wherever they exist once the Afghanistan campaign came to
a
                  logical end.

                  "President Bush has been very clear that the effort
against
                  terrorism is a global one," he said.






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Wednesday, November 07, 2001 6:48 AM

[MAPC-discuss] Arming India (fwd)