Ahead of next month's South Asian Association of Regional Coorperation summit, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Friday said India desired to see its neighbours feel secure and confident that in New Delhi "they have a wellwisher".
"We see their prosperity as a guarantee of ours. We see their progress as reinforcing ours. And so must they," he said speaking at the India Today conclave. Singh said the destiny of people of South Asia is interlinked and inter-dependent. "Our region must and can move forward through such a cooperative engagement," he said.
Noting that India would be hosting the SAARC Summit within a fortnight, the Prime Minsiter said "We must make better use of the opportunities the world offers us. We must be more open to our own neighbourhood."
Besides, he saw a similar mutually beneficial inter-dependence between India and the wider neighbourhood of the Indian Ocean and the Asia-Pacific regions. "For centuries our forefathers sailed westwards and eastwards -- as teachers and traders, as merchants and monks. That is how we should once again approach the world," he said.
The prime minister told the conclave on "Challenges for the Brave New World: Can India take the lead" that he believed that Indians have always been open to global influences and that "ours will always be an open society".
"Even in the economic sphere, we are today as open as any free market democracy in the world," Singh said.
Addressing the conclave, which was attended by former Iranian President Mohamamd Khatami, the prime minister said there was no issue that cannot be resolved through dialogue and discussion. "I have often said, both in the context of domestic politics and international conflict, that there is no issue that cannot be resolved through dialogue and discussions", he said. "Violence and force have never offered lasting solutions to human problems," he said adding consultative and consensual approach was what had kept the diverse nation together. Observing that the consensual and accommodative nature had contributed to the richness of composite culture and durability of the country's civilization, he said India can bring a new approach to dealing with global challenges.
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