On Board Special Aircraft: In an indication that India's pro-US tilt was not fetching dividends, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh admitted on Saturday that "some big powers" were coming in the way of New Delhi's desire to get a permanent seat on the UN Security Council.
Addressing reporters accompanying him on his return trip from Britain and Finland, he also accused "elements in Pakistani establishment" of backing terrorism in India.
Prime Minister dealt with several subjects, including arms dealers, the nuclear issue, inter-state water disputes and his own governance.
Manmohan Singh, who held talks with British, Finnish and European Union leaders in the last five days, said there was growing realisation that India ought to get a permanent Security Council seat.
"Having said that, those in power would not like to give up their power."
"Some big powers still do not appear to have made up their minds. Therefore we have a long way to go before effective reforms in the UN Security Council can be realised."
Manmohan Singh did not name any of the "big powers" but they were widely believed to be the US and probably China.
India, along with Brazil Germany and Japan, is seeking permanent seats in the UN top body, saying that the P-5 does not reflect the present-day political realities.
Mechanism needed to regulate middlemen in defence deals
Manmohan Singh appeared to suggest that presence of agents in defence deals was unavoidable, but favoured a mechanism to regulate them.
"If agents cannot be done away with it is better to do deals through them," he said.
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Declining to comment on the Barak missile deal controversy involving former defence minister George Fernandes, Singh said investigations were underway and legal processes must proceed according to established rules.
"But it turns out that the assumption that one can do without agents does require some reappraisal," he said, adding, "Registration or some variant of the mechanism should be explored".
Asked to comment on the controversy surrounding Fernandes, Singh said, "I don't want to comment on any specific issue".
On Fernandes dragging President A P J Abdul Kalam's name into the controversy, he took a swipe at him by saying that he was not surprised.
The CBI has filed an FIR against Fernandes, his associate Jaya Jaitley and others for alleged corruption in the Rs 1,150-crore deal to purchase seven Barak anti-missile defence systems from Israel.
Terrorist actions cannot be justified
Manmohan Singh asserted that there was widespread appreciation that terrorist actions cannot be justified by "invoking so called root causes" and terrorists should not be used to promote terrorism in another country.
His reference was clearly to Pakistan, whose support to terror outfits in India figured in discussions he had with his counterparts Tony Blair of Britain and Matti Vanhanen of Finland.
Asked whether India would present proof of Pakistani involvement in terrorist acts in India, Manmohan Singh said: "Before we give evidence, what is the use of talking about it? We will provide evidence in all cases where we feel that there is involvement of elements in the Pakistani establishment."
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He said while the world discovered terrorism only after 9/11, "we have witnessed terrorist actions since 1989".
The prime minister hoped the Indo-US civil nuclear deal would sail through the US congress.
No comment on Afzal issue
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh refused to comment on the death sentence given to Mohammed Afzal Guru for his role in the 2001 Parliament attack, ignoring the BJP's repeated demand for his stand on the issue.
"I would not like to comment," he said when referred to the BJP's demands on the issue, adding there are set legal processes which must be followed.
BJP leader L K Advani had sought a comment from the Prime Minister on the issue, contending that his silence would send a wrong signal to the nation.
A court in Delhi had set October 20 as the date for Guru's execution before his family submitted a mercy petition to President A P J Abdul Kalam.
India to have new foreign minister soon
Manmohan Singh said India will soon have a full-fledged foreign minister.
"Yes, you will have a full-fledged foreign minister. You won't have to wait for too long," he said.
Manmohan Singh has been heading the foreign ministry ever since K. Natwar Singh resigned early this year over his involvement in the Iraqi oil-for-food scam.
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