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Top Duma leader calls for Indo-Russian disarmament pact

An influential Russian parliamentarian said India and Russia should sign a "joint declaration on disarmament" to overcome differences on the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty.

''India is a nuclear power and no one should overlook the reality,'' said Vladimir Lukin, chairman of the Duma committee on international affairs, in an article on his return from a week-long tour of India.

Lukin, who was in India last week at the head of a Russian parliamentary delegation, held discussions with Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and other senior leaders.

He said Russia should not sacrifice its interests for placating others (the West), adding that India had stood by Moscow on many occasions.

Lukin said the world should appreciate India's threat perceptions and recalled how India had not joined the West in its campaign against Russia in the past.

He said Russia had much to learn from India, while reminding his countrymen that India attained self-sufficiency in many key areas in a short time.

Paying tribute to India's Constitution, he said while that thinking of making changes in Russian constitution, ''We should keep in mind India's experience.''

Lukin made special mention of the Indian President's role in defending the Constitution. ''He (the president) is empowered to protect the territorial integrity of the nation. He is the defender of the Constitution.''

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