Dragon Fire

Question: President Hastings, the statements so far from the State Department and the Pentagon have not made clear where your support lies — with India or Pakistan. Could you clarify your position, please?

Hastings: I want a ceasefire then negotiations. But I want to say something about conflicts, and this one in particular. The grievances which caused this conflict go back to the partition of India in 1947. It is not a forward-looking issue, like the issues which tied us up during the Cold War. That was about the future, whether the political and economic system in the Western democracies or that of the Soviet Union was the more powerful one. The conflict between India and Pakistan is about the past. They have no issue with each other over their political systems and the basic concepts of democracy. This is not Pakistan fighting against the repression of Muslims in India as a whole. Or India defending Hindu rights in Pakistan. This war is about a piece of land called Kashmir. It’s run by India, but claimed by Pakistan and it should have been sorted out as part of the overall independence deal, but it wasn’t and that’s why I’m standing here now.

It would be farcical if the American people were drawn into any kind of war over Kashmir, and we have to bear that in mind. A nuclear weapon might have been used, but the cause of the conflict remains the same.

Question: Sir, we’re getting reports that Pakistan has launched a missile strike on the city of Srinagar in Kashmir. It was conventional, but the Indians were seconds away from retaliating with a nuclear weapon.

Hastings: Yes. I saw those reports as I was coming here. Many innocent Indians have been killed and it might help me answer the first question, about which side I support. America and the American people support democracies. I spoke directly to General Hamid Khan about an hour ago. It is not my practice to talk with dictators, but these were exceptional circumstances. If you remember, President Clinton met directly with one of the former military rulers during his visit to South Asia in 2000. General Khan wanted my support in bringing about peace. I told the General that we needed an unequivocal declaration of a ceasefire. Hamid Khan’s statement, which many of you might have heard, fell far short of that mark. Since then, he has launched a missile strike on Kashmir. It seems to me that we have a nightmare scenario of a desperate military dictator in a bunker with his finger on the nuclear button. In India, we have an elected Prime Minister, working with his democratically appointed ministers and institutions.

Question: Mr President, could you clarify—

Hastings: Sorry, Clarissa, for interrupting, but I want to add one detail, to give you an example of how this thing has played out over the last few hours. We are working with the Indians through normal channels, their ambassadors here and at the United Nations and their officials in Delhi. The Pakistani officials, on the other hand, say they have received no instructions from Islamabad. That situation speaks for itself, Clarissa.

Question: Yes. Thank you. Russia seems to be playing it neutral.

Hastings: Yes. I have spoken to President Gorbunov. We offered to help each other in whatever way would bring about peace quickest.

Question: But China seems to be taking a different line.

Hastings: Yes. And we expect it to. China is a long-standing ally of Pakistan’s. It has a problem with India over Tibet. There is also healthy competition for these two great nations in their race for modernization. I know Joan Holden has been speaking to their Foreign Minister, Jamie Song, in Beijing and I don’t see a problem with this. You are all probably more familiar with the way we worked with Russia in Europe and the Middle East. Our alliances might be different, but we are all working towards peace.

Question: Mr President, can you envisage any circumstances in which the United States will become militarily involved in this conflict?

Hastings: Only to save lives. And, I’m really sorry, I’ve just had a message that the Indian Prime Minister needs to speak to me urgently. I have to go.