DHAKA, 11 September 2003 — Pakistani Foreign Minister Khurshid Mahmoud Kasuri warned yesterday that Israel’s sale of weapons to India could disturb the balance of power in South Asia.
Kasuri made the comment while in Dhaka to invite Bangladesh to a regional summit in Pakistan, as Prime Minister Ariel Sharon visited India with a delegation that included Israeli arms dealers.
“By visits of that nature in which the primary purpose seems to be the sale of ultra-modern and strategic weaponry aimed at disturbing the balance of power in South Asia, ultimately it will be the poor people of South Asia who will pay,” he told reporters in Dhaka.
“To that extent I think it is most unfortunate,” he said.
Kasuri said Islamabad wanted friendly ties with all South Asian countries, including its nuclear rival India, but at the same time was ready to defend itself.
“We do not have any aggressive intention against any country. But we have taken all possible precautions in all fields to defend every inch of our country,” he said.
Kasuri said Islamabad would not “compete with India in the form of a military race, but we will do all that it takes to maintain a minimum credible deterrent.”
India, once a fervent critic of Israel, has moved rapidly closer to the Jewish state in the five years since the Hindu right entered power.
Officials from both countries now speak of a “strategic triangle against terrorism” among India, Israel and the United States.
Kasuri was in Dhaka to prepare for a summit next year of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation which was delayed due to tensions between India and Pakistan. The annual SAARC summit was to have been held in Islamabad in January but India failed to confirm its attendance.
The meet has now been rescheduled to January 2004 and India has indicated it will attend, following moves by New Delhi and Islamabad to mend their ties after a year and a half of military tension.
Kasuri yesterday formally handed an official invitation to the summit to Bangladeshi Prime Minister Khaleda Zia after holding brief talks with his counterpart Morshed Khan.
A spokesman for the premier told reporters Zia had said SAARC should be further strengthened and made pro-active for the welfare of the region’s people.
