Search the Internet          Tips

British envoys to carry forward US diplomacy

It will now be the turn of British interlocutors to visit South Asia to persuade India and Pakistan to end their war mongering, as Britain and the United States mount a well-calibrated attempt to deescalate the situation in the region.

According to officials in the external affairs ministry, following Monday's telephone conversation between British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw and External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh, two high-profile officials from the United Kingdom are expected to visit New Delhi in the first half of July.

British Defence Secretary Geoffrey Hoon and Sir David Manning, a key adviser of Prime Minister Tony Blair on international matters, will be visiting the region as part of diplomatic efforts being mounted by the US and UK to end the India-Pakistan standoff.

Tensions grew again on Sunday after the latest Newsweek carried an interview with President Pervez Musharraf where the Pakistani dictator denied giving any commitment to the US to close down terrorist camps in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and end cross-border terrorism.

An angry India on Monday took up the matter with the US. A spokesman for the US embassy in New Delhi issued an official statement denying the general's claims and said the Pakistani leader had indeed assured Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage that he would end support to all cross-border terrorism.

By the afternoon, Straw had called up Jaswant Singh and the two foreign ministers discussed the present situation in South Asia and Musharraf's statement, a spokesperson for the external affairs ministry said.

Continuing the calibrated US-UK efforts, it is now the turn of the UK to send its envoys to South Asia. Straw's phone call was necessitated by Musharraf's interview, but the visits of Hoon and Manning had already been planned in advance.

Hoon will be visiting New Delhi on July 3 and 4, during which he is expected to meet Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Defence Minister George Fernandes, among others. "The South Asian situation will figure prominently in the talks," a senior official said.

India has been told that the UK and the US are mounting a very well-coordinated effort in South Asia, and what they have been doing for the past 54 years, ever since the Kashmir dispute reached the United Nations, has only got better.

The coordination extends up to the highest level, with US President George Bush and Prime Minister Blair discussing the issue almost every 10 days. "What we convey to the British very well reaches the US," said a senior diplomat.

Sir David will be in India on July 10 and 11. He currently heads the Cabinet office defence and overseas secretariat. Both visits are related to the tension in South Asia, but "bilateral issues will obviously figure", a senior official said. A defence ministry official said they expect Hoon to take up with his Indian counterpart the sale of the Hawk advanced jet trainers manufactured by British Aerospace.

Terrorism Strikes in Jammu and Kashmir: The Complete Coverage

Back to top

Tell us what you think of this report