Defense minister George Fernandes made it clear that India will not pull back its troops from the borders with Pakistan until General Musharraf translates his words into ''concrete action'' on the ground. The onus is now on the Pakistani President to ''act fast'' to deliver on his commitments. ''The mobilization of Indian forces at the border is complete and any effort at de-escalation can come only, and I repeat only, if and when cross-border terrorism is effectively stopped,'' said Fernandes on the eve of his visit to the US.
Can't expect much yet. If Musharraf can hold it together through a crackdown on the psychoceramics things'll get better. But India's probably still got as much chance of facing a religious loon as Musharraf's successor sometime soon.
Government officials say they envisage a step-by-step process of rapprochement, should Musharraf persist on his reform course. ''We will not be wanting for a response whenever Pakistan does anything positive, but we will not stick our necks out either,'' says a senior Cabinet minister. Yeah. Don't take it too fast, and lend a hand when you can. The fundos are a significant minority in Pakland, but they're not that big a minority. The Paks really should think "secular," though. That's their ultimate salvation. |