New Delhi : Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Sunday headed for Geneva on way back home wrapping up a "highly successful" visit to Britain and the US.

He has effectively conveyed to President George W Bush and world leaders that India's role is vital to address pressing challenges of terrorism and UN reforms, while making it clear that economic reforms in India were irreversible.

Singh's first major diplomatic foray outside Asia after assuming office was described by top officials as "very productive".

As was expected, his meeting with Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf hogged the limelight.

The two leaders appeared to have struck a good chemistry and had candid exchange of views, the officials said. Unlike in the past, when heightened tensions between the two countries marred summit-level interactions, there was an atmosphere of bonhomie with Singh reciting Urdu couplets with the message of burying the past and making a new beginning, officials said.

There was no hedging on the vexed Jammu and Kashmir issue with both sides willing to look "beyond" stated positions, the officials said.

This was reflected in the joint statement issued after the Singh-Musharraf talks.

The two leaders agreed that "possible options" should be explored for a peaceful, negotiated settlement of the Kashmir issue in a sincere spirit and purposeful manner. During what was described as "frank and constructive" discussions, Singh put across to the Pakistani leader that meaningful progress can be made on the composite dialogue process only if Pakistan firmly controlled terror acts emanating from its soil.

There was also a reminder of Pakistan's commitment made in January this year not to allow territory under its control for terrorist purposes, the officials said, adding Musharraf explained the steps taken by Pakistan Government to crack down on terrorist and extremist outfits in his country and that there would be no let up in these efforts.

Both the leaders lay special emphasis on generating an atmosphere of "trust and mutual understanding" for carrying forward the talks.

As a step in this direction, the two sides shared the view that there should be regular top-level interactions, which could be carried out either through bilateral exchanges or through meetings at multilateral fora.

Pakistan Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz will meet Singh in the next two months when he visits New Delhi as SAARC Chairman. The two leaders will have a second meeting when they travel to Dhaka for the SAARC Summit in January. Foreign Ministers K Natwar Singh and Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri will meet before that.

It has already been decided that Foreign Secretaries Shyam Saran and Riaz Khokhar will meet in December to review the composite dialogue process and chalk out the schedule for the next round of talks on the eight issues under it including Jammu and Kashmir and peace and security.

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Press Trust of India
Sep 26, 2004