New Delhi: India on Thursday said the Mumbai blasts will have no bearing on the forthcoming Foreign Minister-level talks with Pakistan and the scheduled visit of US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
“They are (on schedule). There is no change in the scheduled visits of Secretary Clinton or the Foreign Minister of Pakistan,” External Affairs Minister S M Krishna told reporters when asked whether the India-Pakistan Foreign Minister-level talks were on schedule.
He condemned the “dastardly and heinous attacks on Mumbai” and said that the State will do everything within its power to bring the guilty to justice at the earliest.
“This is yet another grim reminder to everyone in this region and our country that terror is a continuing threat to India and it is necessary for all Indians to be ever vigilant of these terrorist attacks,” he said.
“I condemn these dastardly and heinous attacks on Mumbai where precious lives were lost and a number of our brothers and sisters are injured. I join the nation in mourning the deaths and conveying heartfelt condolences to members of the bereaved families,” he said.
Krishna was interacting with the media on the sidelines of his talks with Burhanuddin Rabbani, Chairman of the High Peace Council of Afghanistan.
Krishna is expected to hold talks with the Pakistan Foreign Minister towards the end of this month to review the progress of the bilateral peace process that was revived earlier this year. Clinton has also said she would be travelling to India on July 19-20 as planned.
‘It’s more important to stand with India’: Denouncing the Mumbai serial blasts as “despicable”, Clinton, meanwhile, has made it clear that she would go ahead with her visit to New Delhi next week for the security dialogue, saying it is more important than ever to stand with India in the struggle against terrorism.
“We condemn the despicable act of violence designed to provoke fear and division. Those who perpetrated it must know they cannot succeed,” she said. (PTI)
