India bonds with Iran, snubs America's

New Delhi: India doesn’t need advice from the US on how to conduct its relations with other countries—that is the message the country has sent before Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad visits New Delhi.

The Ministry of External Affairs on Tuesday reacted strongly to the US State Department telling India what to tell Iranian President Ahmadinejad. The State Department wanted India to tell Ahmadinejad that his country should observe UN Security Council resolutions on its nuclear programme.

The Ministry of External Affairs said that both nations are perfectly capable of managing all aspects of their relationship and that neither country needs any guidance.

“On the future conduct of bilateral relations as both believe that engagement and dialogue alone lead to peace. It is important that the genius of each nation living in a particular region is respected and allowed to flower to meet the expectations of enriching relations with neighbours,” said Navtej Sarna, spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs.

Indian diplomats say the tough response to Washington suggested the Government might have given up on the Indo-US nuclear deal.

Meanwhile, the government is also playing the Shia Muslim card. A large chunk of the Karnataka electorate comprises Shia Muslims and the government clearly hopes the visit of Ahmadinejad, a Shia, will help the Congress party with Shia Muslim votes.

A reference to the region in the MEA statement also put on record India and Iran's disagreement with US efforts to begin a dialogue with the so-called moderate Taliban. Indian diplomats also recalled that India and Iran were the major backers of the Northern Alliance when the Taliban ruled Afghanistan.

US, IRAN AND INDIA

US demanded
US State Department: "We would hope that the Indian government, or any government that was engaging with the Iranians, including with President Ahmadinejad, would call on him to meet the requirements that the Security Council and the international community has placed on him in terms of suspending their uranium enrichment activities and complying with other requirements regarding their nuclear programme".
US would "encourage" India to ask Iran to end its "rather unhelpful activities with respect to Iraq, with respect to support for terrorism, including organisations like Hezbollah and Hamas, and to otherwise become a more responsible actor on the world stage".

External Affairs Ministry replied
"India and Iran are ancient civilisations whose relations span centuries. Both nations are perfectly capable of managing all aspects of their relationship. Neither country needs any guidance on the future conduct of bilateral relations."

A short trip

Ahmedinejad will stop over in Delhi on April 29. He will hold talks with PM Manmohan Singh on a wide range of bilateral and international issues.

(For updates you can share with your friends, follow IBNLive on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and Pinterest)

#India #iran #United states #Mahmoud Ahmadinejad