Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Peace with Pakistan and terrorism



A couple of hours after after I read this interesting article published in the Indian Defence Review, terrorists bombed the German Bakery in Pune. It seems obvious that India did not suffer any terrorist attack for the past one year, just because Delhi refused to talk to Islamabad as long as the perpetrators of 26/11 were not punished. This decision put a tremendous pressure on Islamabad to deal with the rogue elements in Pakistan.
But the Indian government changed its policy (probably for the sake of pleasing Obama Administration); the pressure on Islamabad was removed and a few days later, terrorism stroke again in India. 
Indian leaders and politicians should think carefully before taking the next step.


Peace with Pakistan: an idea whose time has passed
By Dr Prem Mahadevan
Indian Defence Review
Issue: Vol 25.1 Jan-Mar 2010
A leading Indian English language  newspaper has chosen to begin 2010 by stirring up controversy. It has run a series of editorials advocating peace initiatives with Pakistan, despite the manifest unwillingness of Islamabad to punish the perpetrators of 26/11. What might have begun as a practical joke by the newspaper’s editorial staff has since acquired pretensions to seriousness. The newspaper cites a dubious and unverifiable poll result, suggesting that most people in India and Pakistan strongly desire a resumption of peace talks between the two countries. Going by the reader response posted on the newspaper’s website, the poll was either poorly conducted or biased in its sampling. A very large number of Indians are in no hurry to forget Pakistani sponsorship of terrorism. Their reluctance to let bygones be bygones stems not from hostility towards Pakistan per se but rather, a natural instinct towards self-preservation... Read on.

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