Need to reflect on Indo-Pak ties, No coercion on Iran: PM

On Board Air India One, July 18 (UNI) Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said there was need for India to ''reflect'' on its ties with Pakistan as the dialogue process had suffered following the July 11 blasts, but threw New Delhi's weight behind Iran on the nuclear issue, hours ahead of its Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottak's arrival here.

Talking to reporters while returning from the G8 summit, Dr Singh clarified the government's stand on various issues ranging from the office-of-profit, appointment of new Foreign Minister, Cabinet reshuffle and the Indo-US nuclear deal.

The Prime Minister made it clear that India would not accept any fresh conditions from the US, IAEA or the 45-member Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) under the Indo-US deal spelt out in the July 18, 2005 and March 2, 2006 joint statements and the separation plan presented to Parliament for placing 14 of the 22 nuclear facilities under international inspections.

Admitting that the dialogue process with Pakistan had suffered following the July 11 blasts in Mumbai, Prime Minister said: ''For the time being, the dialogue process has suffered (but) I would not say it is a setback.'' ''Look at the options... it is inevitable we should reflect on our relationship with Pakistan,'' he said. Continuing in the same breath, he, however, said he had pointed out more than once that the destinies of the people of South Asia were closely interlinked. Both India and Pakistan needed peace and stability.

''Anything that comes as a setback to that does not give me happiness,'' Dr Singh said.

India has suspended the Foreign Secretaries' level talks, expected to be held in New Delhi to review the ongoing peace process at various levels, in wake of the Mumbai blasts.

Dr Singh said he had, in his speeches, replaced the expression ''fight against terrorism'' with ''war against terrorism'' in view of the enormity of the Mumbai blasts, which had left almost 200 people dead and 800 wounded.

Asked how the government now planned to tackle terror, he said it would be a ''long haul.'' ''We have to operate at various levels.

We have to strengthen our intelligence-gathering machinery and also we must simultaneously make every effort to improve our disaster management capabilities to face such incidents, should they happen in the future.'' MORE UNI SN PK DB1954