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Don’t jump the gun on Iran: IAEA chief
Nehru blocked Kashmir settlement: study
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New evidence in Diana’s death case
Decision on Baglihar dam in November
Respect law as Indians do, say Pak lawmakers
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Don’t jump the gun on Iran: IAEA chief
Monterey (California), May 31 Mohamed ElBaradei, Director of the International
Atomic Energy Agency, yesterday said the world shouldn't ''jump the gun' with
erroneous information as he said the US-led coalition did in Iraq in 2003, nor should it push the country into retaliation as international sanctions did in North Korea. ''Our assessment is that there is no immediate threat,'' the winner of the 2005 Nobel Peace Prize told a forum organised by the Monterey Institute of International Studies south of
San Francisco. ''We still have lots of time to investigate.'' ''You look around in the Middle East right now and it's a total mess,'' he said. ''You can not add oil to that fire.'' The recent violent history in Iraq bears an important lesson for diplomacy with neighboring Iran, the diplomat said. ''We should not jump the gun. We should be very careful about assessing the information available to us,'' he said. The Bush administration led a coalition into Iraq in 2003 saying President Saddam Hussein was developing weapons of mass destruction. No such weapons were found. ''I ask myself every day if that's the way we want to go in getting rid of every single dictator,'' ElBaradei said. While it was unclear whether Iran ultimately intended to redirect its development of nuclear power into a weapons system, it was clear there was no danger of that right now, he said. The five UN Security Council permanent powers and Germany, trying to curb Tehran's nuclear programme, are planning to meet in Vienna tomorrow to try to finalize a package of incentives for Iran to halt uranium enrichment along with penalties if it keeps defying international pressure. ElBaradei said he believed a majority in the Iranian leadership was still interested in a negotiated solution and normal relations with the world. The United States is
pressing for tough UN sanctions if Iran does not comply. ''It would be terrible'' to try to strengthen sanctions, which could force Iran to retaliate, he said. ''We have learned some lessons from North Korea,'' he
said.' When you push a country into a corner, you are giving the driver's seat to the hard-liners there”. — Reuters
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Nehru blocked Kashmir settlement: study
Islamabad, May 31 Dwelling on former US diplomat Dennis Kux’s recent book, “The India-Pakistan Negotiating Experience”, the Daily Times newspaper said if Nehru had accepted the proposal, “the history of the sub-continent would have been quite different today”. The proposal had been jointly worked out by then US President John F. Kennedy and then British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan. Kux writes that by the time the proposal was submitted to the Indian and Pakistani governments, “President Kennedy had grown increasingly pessimistic about the negotiations”. Unfortunately, due to a bureaucratic mix-up, Pakistan received the proposal, called “Elements of a Kashmir Settlement”, before India did, which Nehru “used” as “an excuse to finish” what he called “ill-conceived initiatives, however well-intentioned they may be”. — IANS
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New evidence in Diana’s death case
London, May 31 Lord Stevens, former chief of the London police, said in an interview at Hay Festival in Hay-on-Wye that the inquiry had come across new witnesses and new forensic evidence. Lord Stevens has been heading the inquiry instituted by the Royal Coroner in 2004. The probe focuses on claims that the car crash, in which Diana and Dodi Al Fayed died, was not an accident. Refusing to go into details, he said he had revealed more than he intended to, according to a BBC report."We've got new witnesses and new forensic evidence. I can't tell you (more) at this stage. You've already got under my radar." He further said "At the end of the day we have to do a job that draws a line under this one way or another." Lord Stevens said they had taken possession of the black BMW involved the crash and added that it had been dismantled for investigation. — IANS
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Decision on Baglihar dam in November
Islamabad, May 31 This was announced by Pakistani officials after attending yet another hearing on the Baglihar project held by the Swiss expert, Ramind Lafeeti, in London yesterday. The head of Pakistani delegation and Federal Secretary (Water and Power) Ishfaq Mehmood said Pakistan was satisfied over the way the hearings were conducted. “It gave us a good opportunity to effectively put across our viewpoint,” state-run APP news agency quoted him as saying. During the discussion on the Baghliar dam, the technical experts of the two countries gave their oral arguments because they had already submitted their viewpoints in written form. — PTI
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Respect law as Indians do, say Pak lawmakers
Islamabad, May 31 Pakistanis should at least learn some good lessons from the Indians as how to respect the law, where even a Chief Minister is seen respecting an order issued by a local Mayor, members of the Pakistan Subcommittee of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) said. The PAC subcommittee includes members from both ruling and Opposition parties of Pakistan. “The Indians are becoming a big democratic nation because they respect law,” observed the PAC members while regretting the sorry attitude of the civil, military bureaucracy in Pakistan which violated the law with impunity, The News reported. The observations were made by the members during a course of discussion on alleged corruption committed by former Director-General of Pakistan Post Office Agha Masood who was a retired military officer. Opposition member Nisar Ali Khan said the PAC had failed to hold such powerful officials accountable despite knowing that they were involved in irregularities. Intervening, Kunwar Khalid Younis of the Muthahida Quami Movement (MQM), who headed the panel, said Pakistanis needed to learn lessons from the Indians on abiding law. — PTI
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