02 October 2001
Transcript: Secretary Powell and Indian Foreign Minister, Oct 2
(India, Pakistan, terrorism, Middle East Peace) (1370)
Speaking to reporters at the conclusion of official meetings between
the State Department and senior Indian officials October 2, Secretary
Powell expressed condolence for yesterday's terrorist attack in
Srinagar, Kashmir. Calling the attack a "terrible, heinous act that
killed innocent civilians," Powell said, "this is this kind of
terrorism that we (US and India) are united against."
Highlighting India's commitment to democracy, to free speech, to
freedom of individuals, Indian Foreign Minister Singh said his nation
stands "shoulder to shoulder with the United States of America for
these values, in this fight against terrorism."
(begin transcript)
Remarks By Secretary Of State Colin L. Powell His Excellency Jaswant
Singh, Minister of External Affairs and Defense of the Republic of
India After Their Meeting
October 2, 2001
SECRETARY POWELL: Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. It has been a
great pleasure for me to receive my colleague, Mr. Singh, the Foreign
Minister and Minister of Defense of India. We have had a good
discussion, as we always do, of items of interest to both of us.
On this occasion, I took the opportunity to express condolences of the
American people and my personal condolences over the events that took
place in Kashmir yesterday, that terrible terrorist act, that heinous
act, that killed innocent civilians and also struck at a government
facility. It is this kind of terrorism that we united against. I also
expressed my condolences to my colleague over the loss of Indian
citizens at the World Trade Center, reaffirming once again that it was
an attack not just against the United States but against the world.
I thanked him also for the support that India and the Indian people
have given to us in this time of difficulty. We are very grateful for
that support, and we are very grateful for the good wishes of the
Indian people and the expression of support that we have received from
the Prime Minister. So, my colleague, it is again a pleasure to have
you here.
MINISTER SINGH: Thank you very much. Well, really, I cannot improve
upon what my colleague has just said. As always, it has been a great
pleasure. We had a very good discussion.
India's commitment to values that we share with the United States of
America, to democracy, to free speech, to freedom of individuals, to a
certain way of life of which terrorism is the very antithesis, and our
commitment to stand shoulder to shoulder with the United States of
America for these values in this fight against terrorism is in no
fashion any less than anyone else. We deeply, deeply grieve at this
great tragedy that was visited upon the United States of America.
And as a gesture of solidarity, as a gesture of unity with the United
States, therefore the Prime Minister commissioned me to carry two urns
which I presented to the Mayor of New York; one of waters from nine of
the most famous rivers of India, and then soil of India, with the
request that whenever a memorial is built there, these be placed at
the memorial as a gift and a contribution of the people of India, as
between two natural allies, we continue to fight this new menace that
the world is now confronted by.
QUESTION: Mr. Secretary, has the administration been working on or
come close to unveiling a new comprehensive plan for peace in the
Middle East, including US unequivocal endorsement of statehood? Was
that plan sidetracked by the events of September 11, and is that plan
or some new version of it going to be unveiled soon?
SECRETARY POWELL: You speak of a plan. We have had a plan since the
administration came into office in January, and that plan was to do
everything we could to get violence down to the lowest possible levels
in the region and then, once we had the Tenet Plan completed, to
embark upon the Mitchell Plan, which would bring us to a point through
confidence building and a cease-fire so that we begin negotiations
again between the Palestinians and the Israelis.
As the President said this morning, there has always been a vision in
our thinking, as well as in previous administrations' thinking, that
there would be a Palestinian state that would exist at the same time
that the security of the State of Israel was also recognized,
guaranteed and accepted by all parties. That vision is alive and well,
and we hope that it will come about as a result of negotiations
between the two sides. So, in that regard, there is nothing new. And,
in fact, as you heard earlier, reflects statements also made by Prime
Minister Sharon as recently as last week.
We are always reviewing what we can do, how we can make our statements
clearer, and I am always considering what statements I can make in
order to make sure people understand the American position. But the
events of September 11 don't really play into this. We were hard at
work before the 11th of September in trying to help in the region, and
we are hard at work after the 11th of September.
In fact, immediately after the tragedy of 11 September, I was on the
phone the very next day trying to reenergize activities so we can get
into the Mitchell plan.
QUESTION: Mr. Secretary, let me ask you, sir, a question. Do you agree
with the Indian Foreign Affairs Minister, Mr. Jaswant Singh, what he
said yesterday at the White House, that this is the same group, same
organization, same kind of people, but running in different names all
over the world, including in India?
Now, as far as this bombing in India is concerned, some officials in
India blame Pakistan; if you agree with that?
And also, if you are ready to close down -- or I would say that until
you close down all the terrorist centers, training centers, in
Pakistan, we can never have peace in the area.
SECRETARY POWELL: We are against terrorism. This clearly was an act of
terror. And as the President made it clear in his statements and in
his speech the week before last, we are going after terrorism in a
comprehensive way, not just in the present instance of al-Qaida and
Usama bin Laden, but terrorism as it affects nations around the world,
to include the kind of terrorism that affects India.
QUESTION: Can I follow up on that? When you talk about the initial war
on terrorism and getting Usama bin Laden and his network, do you
include freedom fighters on the Pakistani side of the Line of Control
in Kashmir, many of whom train in Usama bin Laden's camps in
Afghanistan, as those who need to be eliminated? Will you get tough on
the Pakistani Government to do something about that, or is there a
difficulty here because of Pakistan's role?
And, Mr. Foreign Minister, as the US is working very closely with
Pakistan right now in the war against terrorism, do you think that
President Musharraf can be trusted as a full partner in the war
against terrorism?
Thank you.
SECRETARY POWELL: We are going after the al-Qaida network, in its
various manifestations, and Usama bin Laden and his lieutenants who
are in Afghanistan, in the first instance. And as I said previously
and the President has said repeatedly, we are going to be conducting a
campaign that goes after terrorism, and we'll use many tools --
financial tools, intelligence, law enforcement, diplomatic and
political tools -- to accomplish the mission that the President has
set before us.
MINISTER SINGH: If the leadership of Pakistan and if Pakistan were to
abandon the path of violence and of terrorism and join the rest of the
international community in its fight against this evil, it would be a
development that India would welcome. Why not?
SECRETARY POWELL: Thank you.
MINISTER SINGH: Thank you very much.
(end transcript)
(Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S.
Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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