'PM to ask G8 to have zero tolerance for terror'

New Delhi, July 15: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will ''make a strong pitch'' at the G8 summit of the US, the UK and six other rich nations for declaring a ''zero tolerance'' global approach towards terrorism, replacing the present ''segmented'' response.

Dr Singh, who is leaving for Saint Petersburg tomorrow on a three-day visit to Russia to attend an ''outreach meeting'' with the G8, would take up the issue in a strong way in the light of the July 11 serial blasts in Mumbai and Srinagar, Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran told reporters.

This was necessary as the terrorists were having better coordination among themselves than the countries who were victims of such violence and were fighting to wipe out the menace, Mr Saran said.

Besides attending the summit, Dr Singh would have bilateral meetings with several leaders from the G8 -- US, UK, Canada, Russia, Germany, France, Italy and Japan -- and the outreach nations -- China, Brazil, South Africa, Mexico and Congo, which would represent the African Union. India was G8's outreach partner also at last year's July 6-8 summit at Gleneagles, UK, which was marred by the London bombings on July 7.

Asked whether India would seek to get Pakistan declared a terrorist nation, Mr Saran said, ''We are not in the business of telling them (G8) who they should name and who they should not.'' Replying to questions, he said ''zero tolerance for terrorism should be unambiguously demonstrated'' if the G8 and the global community really wanted to succeed in their efforts to counter the menace.

A united response from the international community was necessary on the issue as terror had spread its tentacles far and wide, causing havoc at the World Trade Centre at New York, London and Madrid, besides India, the Foreign Secretary said. The present ''segmented'' response would not suffice as the problem was not country or region-specific, he said.

Dr Singh was expected to take up the issue at the summit level as well as at his bilateral meetings, he said.

Asked to specify the bilateral meetings lined up for the Prime Minister, he said these were being still finalised. He, however, made it clear that Dr Singh would have opportunities to have such meetings with a number of leaders from the G8 and outreach partners.

The other major issue that would dominate the discussions related to ''energy security,'' the main agenda for the summit which was finalised by the host, Russia, along with prevention of infectious diseases and promotion of education, particularly technical and job-oriented courses.

On all these issues, India had held discussions with other outreach partners and had more or less identical views on them, Mr Saran said.

Among those attending the three-day summit, which began today, are Russian President Vladimir Putin, British PM Tony Blair, Presidents George W Bush (US) and Jacques Chirac (France) and German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Chinese President Hu Jintao would be among the leaders from the outreach countries.

India would also take up strongly, along with other outreach nations, the issue of devising a mechanism for keeping the global oil prices, which had shot up to a record 78 dollars a barrel this week, in the interest of the developing countries which required to consume more oil for maintaining the growth momentum and removal of poverty, he said.

Replying to specific questions, Mr Saran said the problem of terrorism was staring at ''us in the face. We will not succeed'' in dealing with it effectively as it had been acknowledged that there was a ''link'' between the blasts in Mumbai, London and Madrid. Asked whether India and other outreach nations would seek to join the elite group, he said it was for the G8 to decide.

The implementation of the measures announced at Gleneagles for poverty-stricken Africa would also come up at the St Petersburg meet. As far as India was concerned, it had already implemented a number of initiatives in Africa, including a pan-African e-network.

''India has already done quite a bit.'' Among other issues that would figure prominently at the summit were sending out a strong message to WTO member nations to arrive at a formula on the contentious issues of reduction of agriculture subsidy, particularly in the US, and opening up of the services sector more by developed nations for enabling free flow of such manpower from India and other developing countries.

India would stick to its demand on these two issues and take up services ''in a strong manner at the summit,'' Mr Saran said.

According to official sources, among the leaders with whom Dr Singh would have bilateral talks are Mr Putin and Mr Bush, Mr Hu, Ms Merkel, Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev.

At their talks, Dr Singh and Mr Bush are likely to apprise each other of the steps taken by their countries for early implementation of the historic but controversial July 18, 2005, deal for cooperation in civil nuclear energy.

The sources said the G8 summit, whose members who make up the key constituents of the 45-member Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), is expected to give its tacit approval for the Indo-US nuke deal.

While the US Senate and House committees have recently given the go-ahead for amending American laws for the proposed cooperation, ''productive'' talks were held between top officials of New Delhi's nuclear establishment and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for formulating India-specific safeguards for 14 of its 22 thermal nuclear reactors which would be thrown open for international inspections under the deal.

UNI