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Gujral accuses Musharraf of being aggressive

Former Prime Minister I K Gujral on Wednesday accused Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf of being in a 'very aggressive mood'.

He said the Pakistani president is virtually 'holding a pistol to our head' by asking India to discuss Kashmir at the Agra summit.

He said he was not happy with the 'signals' emanating from Islamabad which have dampened his expectations from the summit.

"I have held four summit level talks with prime ministers of Pakistan but here he (Musharraf) comes as if holding a pistol to our head to say talk it (Kashmir issue) or I go back," Gujral said while participating in a TV discussion 'Line of Fire' conducted by noted journalist Karan Thapar.

"He (Musharraf) is marching in...He is in a very aggressive mood. He tailors his team accordingly. He does not want to talk commerce, trade or travel but only Kashmir," Gujral said.

"What does he think? Is it a defeated nation he is coming to or is it a friendly nation he is seeking," the former prime minister wondered.

Rejecting Musharraf's style of diplomacy, the former prime minister said this was not the way to conduct diplomatic talks between two sovereign nations. Musharraf should behave as a president and step out of the shoes of an army general.

Gujaral appreciated Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and said that he is conducting himself in a 'remarkably good fashion and showing restraint.'

Giving a piece of advice to Musharraf, he said, 'please learn the merit of restraint failing which there could be no breakthrough in talks but only a breakdown.'

PTI

Indo-Pak Summit 2001: The Complete Coverage

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