India launches offensive

[silver 2039]

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India_on_offensive_gives_Pakistan_proof/articleshow/3938815.cms


Diplomatic offensive that is.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India_on_offensive_gives_Pakistan_proof/articleshow/3938815.cms#

[COLOR=blue ! important][FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][COLOR=blue ! important][FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]NEW [/FONT][COLOR=blue ! important][FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]DELHI[/FONT][/COLOR][/FONT][/COLOR][/COLOR]
: India on Monday went on a diplomatic offensive by presenting Pakistan, and other key countries, a dossier of incriminating "material" from the probe into the [COLOR=blue ! important][FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][COLOR=blue ! important][FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]Mumbai[/FONT][/FONT][/COLOR][/COLOR] attacks, including telephone intercepts between the attackers and their Lashkar-e-Taiba handlers in Pakistan.

This "hard evidence" was also presented to the US, UK, Israel and other countries who lost their citizens in the attacks. [COLOR=blue ! important][FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif][COLOR=blue ! important][FONT=Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif]India[/FONT][/FONT][/COLOR][/COLOR] will give copies of the documentation to members of the UN Security Council and G-8 as well on Tuesday to mount pressure on Islamabad to acknowledge, as a first step, the involvement of its citizens in the attacks, and then follow that up with action against them.

Foreign secretary Shivshankar Menon told reporters the dossier was handed over to the Pakistan high commissioner Shahid Malik in Delhi and to the Pakistan foreign secretary Salman Bashir in Islamabad, undercutting Pakistan's alibi - that India has not shared evidence with it - for refusing to move against terrorists.

Later, Pakistan's interior affairs adviser Rehman Malik was quoted as saying Pakistan was "examining" the material and would craft a formal response soon. This was also told to the visiting US assistant secretary of state Richard Boucher, who arrived in Pakistan this morning. According to Pakistan media, US vice-president elect Joe Biden is expected to reach Islamabad with a delegation of US Congressmen.

Though the information minister of Pakistan, Sherry Rahman stressed that the evidence was late in coming, the plea was not going to cut ice with the US which made it clear that the evidence collected by India was strong enough for the FBI to conduct its own investigation in Pakistan and take it "to its conclusion".

"The FBI will pursue the evidence gathered there (in Mumbai) and they will eventually take the evidence to Pakistan because under our law, if Americans are killed, the US itself has a duty to pursue all avenues to the bottom of it," US ambassador in Delhi, David C Mulford told reporters here. "This is what the FBI is doing and will do in coming weeks and months."

According to sources, FBI has asked Islamabad to allow its team access to the Kasab's village. It is not known whether the team has been granted permission to go there (home minister P Chidambaram said in an interview that he does not think the team has reached the village), although a TV channel claimed that a FBI team has already reached Pakistan.

As part of the diplomatic campaign foreign minister Pranab Mukherjee has sent a letter on the documentation to all his counterparts in other capitals. The letter, said sources, asked these countries to press Pakistan to root out the terror networks from its soil as they posed a threat to the entire world.

Briefing reporters on the handing over of 26/11 dossier to Pakistan, foreign secretary Menon asserted that "the investigations showed the attacks were clearly linked to elements in Pakistan. It is our expectation that the government of Pakistan will promptly undertake further investigations in Pakistan and share the results with us so as to bring the perpetrators to justice. We now want action."

Questioned about India's refusal for a joint investigation with Pakistan, Menon said the law states that the state where the crime was committed should conduct the investigation. "But the conspiracy and planning of the attack was in Pakistan," he said, stressing that India would follow the investigations to wherever it leads in Pakistan.

Indications from the government in recent days is clearly that the attacks had the support and training by serving or retired ISI officials. "It's hard to believe that something of this scale that took so long to prepare and of this nature that amounts to a commando attack could occur without anybody, anywhere in the establishment knowing that this was happening," Menon said.

Menon clarified India's demands from Pakistan that there should be no further attacks from Pakistan and that the perpetrators should be "brought to Indian justice". He danced around the term "extradition" probably because Pakistan is so sensitive to it. But the implication was clear: that India wanted Pakistan to hand over the suspects.

India has passed on the evidence to Pakistan just before the US vice-president elect Joe Biden's visit to Islamabad, scheduled for later this week. His visit, just before the inauguration is intended to get a first hand feel of the situation in Pakistan and to deliver some important messages from the incoming US president Barack Obama.

India used a meeting with a visiting vice foreign minister of China, He Yafei, to push the same message. Menon said China "understood" India's position and offered to ramp up counter-terror cooperation with India.

What would be the aim behind this diplomatic initiative? It's unlikely Pakistan will hand over any suspects. Shaming Pakistan into acting against terrorists will be difficult until some strong multilateral levers like IMF funds, World Bank aid and the UN Security Council.

Bilaterally, only countries like the US, China, UAE and Saudi Arabia can lean on Pakistan. Over the next couple of days, the ruler of the UAE, Sheikh Al-Nahyan will be in Delhi and India will push the diplomatic envelope at him too.

It remains to be seen if Pakistan will act on this. Don't get your hope's up, at most they'll hand over some token men.

 

[sp1023]

Yay Silver! While your country gets awesomer, mine will be swallowed by global warming!

 

[hossam]

dude that was not cool

but i will admit, it was well played.

 

[RoboPig]

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India_on_offensive_gives_Pakistan_proof/articleshow/3938815.cms


Diplomatic offensive that is.

If I hadn't seen this beforehand I would have gotten a terrible fright. Damn you silver!!! *shakes fist*


As you said, this is nothing to get excited about. Pakistan will say that they cannot find the criminals that India wants and will promise to turn them over as soon as they are captured, which will never happen. I doubt that Pakistan will even hand over token men, their government has a little desire to co-operate with India.

EDIT:

NEW DELHI: Pakistan on Tuesday said the evidence provided by India is insufficient and no action can be based upon it, according to Pakistani
media.

According to 'The Nation', Pakistan has made it clear to US assistant secretary of state for south and central Asian affairs Richard Boucher that the proof given to Pakistan was too insufficient to be made a ground for any action and that the statement evoked from Kasab under torture and violence of investigation agencies has no legal status.

Pakistan is expected to reply to India
within the next couple of days.

Times Now has even reported that the Pakistani government is preparing a separate dossier on India’s involvement in terror.

Earlier on Monday, India presented Pakistan, and other key countries, a dossier of incriminating "material" from the probe into the Mumbai attacks, including telephone intercepts between the attackers and their Lashkar-e-Taiba handlers in Pakistan.

India has also alleged that the arms and other articles recovered from Kasab and other people bear the inscription "Made in Pakistan".

This "hard evidence" was also presented to the US, UK, Israel and other countries who lost their citizens in the attacks.

India will give copies of the documentation to members of the UN Security Council and G-8 as well on Tuesday to mount pressure on Islamabad to acknowledge, as a first step, the involvement of its citizens in the attacks, and then follow that up with action against them.

Foreign secretary Shivshankar Menon told reporters the dossier was handed over to the Pakistan high commissioner Shahid Malik in Delhi and to the Pakistan foreign secretary Salman Bashir in Islamabad, undercutting Pakistan's alibi - that India has not shared evidence with it - for refusing to move against terrorists.

Linky

 

[Winner]

That's the difference between Israel and India. Israel responds to terrorism with a blow to the terrorists, India just complains and talk.

Congrats, India is on the best way to join the Western world in its impotence.

 

[Dachs]

dude that was not cool

but i will admit, it was well played.

Totally got my hopes up.

 

[silver 2039]

I was disappointed too.

 

[Shylock]

Offensive? Did they eat too much garlic again?

 

[Brighteye]

Just take the second 'a' out of the title.

 

[jessiecat]

That's the difference between Israel and India. Israel responds to terrorism with a blow to the terrorists, India just complains and talk.

Congrats, India is on the best way to join the Western world in its impotence.

Is there any thread left that you won't attempt to hijack? Get some shuteye pal.

 

[Yoda Power]

That's the difference between Israel and India. Israel responds to terrorism with a blow to the terrorists, India just complains and talk.

Congrats, India is on the best way to join the Western world in its impotence.

Winner do you really support a war between India and Pakistan? I mean really?

 

[bigdog5994]

i turn on CNN while this thread loaded

 

[Bast]

The last time I checked Pakistan's government DOESN'T support the terrorist groups within it, unlike Hamas or the Iranian Theocracy. So why the hell would or should India go to war against Pakistan?

 

[Shaihulud]

India has also alleged that the arms and other articles recovered from Kasab and other people bear the inscription "Made in Pakistan".

That sounds convenient! Unfortunately, that it isn't enough grounds for a war. Try as I might, I can't imagine the government of Pakistan having a hand in the affair. An extremist terrorist group such as the Taliban might have good reasons to implicate Pakistan in such a matter.

 

[RedRalph]

The last time I checked Pakistan's government DOESN'T support the terrorist groups within it, unlike Hamas or the Iranian Theocracy. So why the hell would or should India go to war against Pakistan?

you need to read up on the ISI some more.

 

[Winner]

Winner do you really support a war between India and Pakistan? I mean really?

No, I don't care much about that part of the world.

 

[Sharwood]

Totally got my hopes up.

Mine too. Goddammit Silver, I was thinking; "WTH? Go India! Why haven't I seen this elsewhere?" Although I knew you were kidding about the nukes.