U.S. has to tread carefully while visiting Indian leaders
Published Thursday December 4th, 2008
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said in New Delhi on Wednesday that Pakistan bears a “special responsibility” to help get to the bottom of last week’s terror attacks in Mumbai.
Rice stopped short of blaming the co-ordinated attacks on Pakistani terrorists, but not by much.
“I made clear that we expect all responsible nations to participate and co-operate in bringing these perpetrators to justice and that Pakistan has a special responsibility to do so,” Rice said.
Her Indian host at an evening news conference was far more direct.
“I informed Dr. Rice that there is no doubt that the terrorist attacks in Mumbai were perpetrated by individuals who came from Pakistan and whose controllers are in Pakistan,” Indian Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee said.
Rice spent the day urging co-operation between the nuclear neighbours, but the rhetoric in both countries only grew hotter.
While she was assuring India of American help in fighting terrorism, the top U.S. military officer was next door in Pakistan for closed-door talks.
Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, met civilian and military officials of both India and Pakistan during the trip, a senior defence official said Wednesday on condition of anonymity.
The official declined to give details and spoke privately because the meetings were still underway, saying only, “It’s all about a co-operative approach to regional security.”
The three-day terrorist attack killed 171 people in India’s financial capital.
The attackers targeted symbols of the Mumbai’s wealth, tourist appeal and western outlook.
Rice suggested that Washington is especially alarmed by the careful targeting and efficiency displayed in the attacks and said “this is a different situation.”
The United States is trying to refocus both Indian and Pakistani leaders on common terrorist threats instead of their suspicions of one another.
Mukherjee showed little sign he is willing to go along.
He said the view that the Mumbai attacks were based in Pakistan is broadly shared around the world, putting Rice on the spot.
The Bush administration has had varying success in reframing its relationship with both countries, who have fought three wars.
In Pakistan’s case, a new civilian government has replaced a military government that was a strong ally of President George W. Bush in fighting terrorism.
In India, a troubled nuclear cooperation deal finally came through this fall and both countries have said it signalled a fresh start after years of lingering Cold War distance.
The United States is in the awkward position of trying to soothe India without angering Pakistan by laying overt blame. U.S. officials have done so obliquely.
On Tuesday, National Intelligence director Mike McConnell said the same group that carried out last week’s attack is believed to be behind the 2006 Mumbai train bombings that killed more than 200.
McConnell didn’t identify the group by name.
However, the Indian government has attributed the 2006 attack to Lashkar-e-Taiba, a Pakistani terrorist group based in Kashmir, and the Students Islamic Movement of India.
A senior State Department official told reporters only that evidence suggests that the brutal, prolonged attack had some roots in Pakistan. Privately, U.S. and foreign counterterrorism officials fingered Lashkar last week.
Mukherjee’s words, the strongest yet from the government, came as thousands of Indians — many calling for war with Pakistan — held a vigil in Mumbai to mark one week since the start of the rampage.
“The government of India is determined to act decisively to protect Indian territorial integrity and the right of our citizens to a peaceful life, with all the means at our disposal,” he said, a turnaround from earlier statements that ruled out military action.
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