news details |
|
|
| Under the shadow of terrorism | | India, Pakistan sign agreement on nuclear weapons | | BL KAK
NEW DELHI, FEB 21
Indian capital witnessed an event of tremendous importance on Wednesday, when, in a major confidence-building measure, India and Pakistan formally signed an agreement to reduce the risk from accidental use of nuclear weapons. The agreement was signed after a Joint Commission meeting co-chaired by the Minister of External Afairs, Pranab Mukherjee, and his Pakistani counterpart, Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri.
The agreement reducing the risk from accidents relating to nuclear weapons was signed by K C Singh, Additional Secretary in External Affairs Ministry, and his Pakistani counterpart Tariq Osman Hyder. An understanding on signing the pact was reached during the Foreign Secretary-level talks in New Delhi on November 14 and it was endorsed at a meeting between the Foreign Ministers of the two countries in Islamabad on January 13.
Pranab Mukherjee and Khurshid Kasuri addressed a joint press conference. According to Kasuri, the two countries have progressed over the Sir Creek issue. He said in reply to a question that Director-General Military Operations (DGMO) of India and Pakistan would meet to discuss the Siachen dispute.
Mukherjee and Kasuri opened peace talks under the shadow of terrorism after the deadly firebombing of a cross-border train that killed 68 people. Indian External Affairs Minister and his Pakistani counterpart, flanked by senior officials, shook hands and smiled for photographers before stepping into an official guest residence (Hyderabad House) for the meeting.
Wednesday's round of talks are the third between the two Foreign Ministers since November.The scheduled session is to review the slow-moving peace process between the two rivals, which was relaunched in January 2004. According to Kasuri, the next round of bilateral peace talks will be held on March 13 and 14 in Islamabad. Kasuri said that steps were being taken for return of Pakistanis injured in the Samjhota Express incident. He said that the two countries should learn lesson from such incidents. He hoped that Pakistan would be informed about the investigations of the tragic incident.
India also assured Pakistan that it would make every effort to bring the perpetrators of Samjhota Express blasts to justice. "The government of India will make every effort to bring to justice these perpetrators of this heinous act", Pranab Mukherjee said. Mukherjee added that holding of Joint Commission meeting reaffirmed the commitment of the two countries to carry forward the dialogue process.
The meeting between Pranab Mukherjee and Khurshid Kasuri was described as "cordial" and "friendly". The talks, it was offically stated, were meant to carry forward the peace proces between the two countries. According to insiders, the issue of terrorism and security for travellers between the two countries dominated the agenda of the meeting, primarily convened for discussing ways to enhance cooperation in trade, economy and social sectors.
Kasuri presented a fresh set of proposals, including the one on liberalising the 1974 visa regime between the two countries, sources said, adding that the Siachen issue also came up during the discussions. The two countries had established a Joint Commission in March 1983 for strengthening cooperation in various fields. However, only three meetings could be held between 1983 and 1989 after which it did not meet following a downslide in relations between the two countries.
It was revived during Pakistan President, Gen. Pervez Musharraf's visit to India in April 2005. Consequently, Mukherjee had, during his visit to Pakistan last month, extended an invitation to Kasuri to visit New Delhi for the Joint Commission meeting.
=========================
Pg 8
NEWS ANALYSIS
Peace must stay the course
India, Pak working jointly is good augury
BL KAK
NEW DELHI, FEB. 21: The evil of terrorist menace is unlikely to be over in the near future. The deadly bomb attack on the "peace train" between India and Pakistan that claimed at least 68 innocent lives looks like becoming the catalyst that forces the duo to work together to tackle the menace that threatens one as much as the other. Indeed, Pakistan's President, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, and India's Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, must stay the course, prove to those who want to derail the peace track that while the human cost is high, the former archrivals are willing to pay the price for peace.
As the hunt begins for the men who placed the combustible cocktail on board, it is a good augury that India and Pakistan are working jointly to investigate this incident. Pakistani officials allowed access to Old Delhi railway station from where the ill-fated train began its journey have diplomatically held their peace. But clearly, security is woefully lax and must be stepped up on all the buses, trains and aircraft that now connect the divided nations. For once, both have shown a rare maturity. There is no finger-pointing, no shrill rhetoric.
And New Delhi and Islamabad say that they will not allow the attack on the most visible symbol of their peace process--a train that was the first confidence-building measure between the two nations-- to derail the dialogue proces between the two countries. More than anything, however, the caring shown by relief teams for the injured and those frantically searching for their loved ones is the greatest indicator yet that the warmth and affection that marks any interaction between the two peoples transcends the political divide.
Meanwhile, according to the American think-tank Stratfor, the use of timed incendiary devices (TIDs) rather than by much more commonly used improvised explosive devices (IEDs) by militants to attack the Samjhauta Express killing 68 people has set the dangerous precedent. It portends similar attacks against India's highly vulnerable mass transit system by terrorists out to destroy any progress toward peace between India and Pakistan.
Stratfor's analysis says: "Because of the important symbolism of the train, it has become an attractive target for militants. However, this appears to be the first time TIDs have been used in a major attack against the country's rail system." Explaining how TIDs work, the report said: "Explosive-actuated TIDs -- more commonly called firebombs -- work by using a relatively small low-intensity explosive charge to ignite a more volatile flammable material. This results in an intense, rapidly spreading fire that quickly can engulf a confined space such as a rail car, subway car or airplane".
In this case, Indian forensic experts described the devices as being composed of sulphur, potassium nitrate and kerosene. Sulphur, potassium nitrate and charcoal are the chemical components of a black powder, which is easily ignited. The black powder, then, appears to have functioned as the explosive, which tore through plastic bottles containing kerosene and ignited the fuel. According to Stratfor's report, the process likely involved the use of commercially available chemical pencil timers -- pencil-shaped casings that contain a vial of acid and safety wire. The report said: "Once the vial is broken, the acid eats through the wire, which then releases a spring-loaded firing pin and activates the igniter, which in this case probably was a pipe bomb filled with the black powder. The time delay of the device can be varied from a few minutes to an entire day, depending on the diameter of the wire used".
According to Indian authorities, four TIDs were planted in suitcases on the train, though two failed to detonate and were recovered and defused. More than a dozen plastic bottles containing the flammable material were packed next to the timers and igniters inside each suitcase, the think tank noted. Stratfor analysis also mentions: "When fire codes and safety regulations on mass transit systems are lax or poorly enforced, and trains might be overcrowded, the effect of a TID attack can be amplified. In this latest attack, even though metal detectors were used to screen passengers, luggage was not checked, allowing the perpetrators to get the devices aboard the train. The death toll probably was further increased because the bars over the train coaches' windows prevented easy escape after the blaze started".
It further adds: "Trains are frequently attacked in India, although all of the major bombings since 1996 -- including the July 2006 Mumbai commuter train attack -- have involved IEDs utilising high explosives such as RDX. However, whereas RDX can be difficult to manufacture or purchase, anyone can acquire gasoline or kerosene. There also are a great many ways to make TIDs, some of which do not even require the use of black powder ".
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
