India backs Bush's missile defense shield

Indian Foreign Minister Jaswant Singh (left) shakes hands with Richard Armitage

In this story: "A great leap forward" Pakistan seeks help RELATED STORIES, SITES

NEW DELHI, India -- U.S. President George W. Bush's vision of nuclear disarmament continues to bring mixed reactions throughout Asia.

Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee praised the scheme as India and the U.S. began talks on Washington's plans to introduce an anti-missile shield.

U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage was due to meet External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh then Vajpayee, three years to the day after Indian nuclear tests soured relations between the two nations.

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Coincidentally, Chinese Prime Minister Zhu Rongji has started a five-country visit in Pakistan, which answered archrival India's nuclear blasts of May 1998 with tests of its own.

New Delhi raised eyebrows at home and abroad last week by coming out in support of the Bush plan.

However, it has stopped short of endorsing the controversial plan to build a missile defense system that would effectively ditch the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty.

"We welcome every move towards lightening the shadow of the nuclear terror under which we live today," Vajpayee said.

"It is in this context that we have welcomed U.S. President Bush's suggestions for steep reductions in nuclear arsenals and a move away from further development of offensive nuclear technologies," he said.

Analysts saw in India's unexpectedly warm response -- which implied support for an anti-missile shield -- a desire to add a strategic dimension to its new friendship with Washington.

India had previously balked at the idea of a U.S. missile interceptor system because of fears that it would spur China to build its nuclear stockpile and suck New Delhi into an arms race with its neighbor.

"A great leap forward"

"The quick and unambiguous support extended by India to certain elements of Mr. Bush's proposals has generated a bit of political heat here," C. Raja Mohan, an influential commentator on geopolitical issues in India, wrote in The Hindu.

"But it also fuelled speculation that Indo-U.S. relations might be on the verge of a great leap forward."

Zhu Rongji (L) shakes hand with Pakistani Chief Executive General Pervez Musharraf

Vajpayee said the world now had a better appreciation of the security imperatives that led him to order the underground tests and reiterated the need for a nuclear arsenal.

"We do believe that a credible minimum nuclear deterrent is a basic security umbrella which we owe to our people," he said.

India has gone to war three times with Pakistan and once with China. It has consistently accused Beijing of transferring nuclear and missile technology to Islamabad.

This week it conducted a major military exercise along the border with Pakistan, adding to tensions which have run high for years over the disputed territory of Kashmir.

While Armitage started out on his diplomatic rounds in New Delhi, China's Zhu began an 11-day-5-country Asian trip in Pakistan. His tour includes visits to Nepal, Sri Lanka and the Maldives, all countries in India's backyard.

China is seen as a key supporter of Pakistan's nuclear and missile program though Islamabad and Beijing deny that their cooperation has violated any international laws governing weapons of mass destruction or transfer of missile technology.

Pakistan seeks help

Pakistani ruler General Musharraf has described Zhu's visit as an opportunity to strengthen ties between the allies.

Pakistan has made it clear that the focus of Zhu's visit will be on economic issues and Islamabad will seek Beijing's help on infrastructure projects.

Pakistani officials say they have identified half a dozen projects such as the building of reservoirs, a new port and a coastal highway, in which China could help.

Pakistan also expects Chinese help in science and technology, small and medium industry and in military equipment production.

China has said it would not violate its commitments on military cooperation with Pakistan.

Reuters contributed to this report.

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Government of India
Government of Pakistan
U.S. National Missile Defense System

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