Posted on 10/04/2001 7:52:26 PM PDT by AM2000
British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who's arriving in Pakistan tomorrow for a four-hour "working visit" to muster support for a global coalition against terrorism is also expected to make a trip to India.
During his stay here, the details of which are being kept under wraps, Blair is likely to hold consultations with Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. The two leaders will review the situation in the region in the backdrop of the terror attacks in the US and the recent Jaish-e-Mohammed car-bomb attack on the J&K Assembly complex.
As Blair's visit is scheduled for Friday afternoon, Vajpayee has rescheduled some of his prior engagements to accommodate the meeting with his British counterpart.
Sources said the British Premier would also exchange notes on a possible US-led attack on the Taliban regime in Afghanistan which has refused to turn over Osama Bin Laden.
In his 10-minute telephonic chat with Vajpayee yesterday, Blair had agreed that the fight against terrorism cannot be in compartments. He even raised the issue in a special session of Britain's Parliament.
"This is a commitment that spans all continents, cultures and religions, reinforced by attacks like the one on the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly in Srinagar which killed over 30 innocent people," Blair told Parliament today.
When contacted for a confirmation of Blair's visit, British High Commission spokesman Gerry McCrudden told the Hindustan Times that Blair's schedule was quite fluid and could undergo last-minute changes. But other sources said that Blair would arrive in New Delhi after his meeting with General Pervez Musharraf in Islamabad.
Problem was that the Muslims made up the majority of the British Army. The same British army that fought Rommel in North Africa and the Japanese in Burma. So, the British realized they could keep the promises they made to the Muslims and give them Pakistan, thereby leaving India peacably. Or they could leave in defeat and humiliation at the hands of their own solidiers.
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