External Affairs Minister Yashwant Sinha has questioned Pakistan’s approach to cross-border terrorism and suggested an Indo-Pak joint mechanism on the lines of Islamabad’s cooperation with US forces in rooting out Al Qaeda.Briefing Indian journalists yesterday here, Sinha said he would not be drawn into a debate on whether cross-border terrorism is declining or not. ‘‘We don’t have a meter to gauge. We are keeping a close watch on the situation. But the whole concept of decline (in terrorism) is self-defeating. It has to be ended.’’ Last Tuesday, in a BBC interview, Pakistan Interior Home Minister Sheikh Saleh Hayat had remarked that when a million-strong Indian army, posted in Jammu and Kashmir, could not stop terrorism, how did India expect Pakistan to control them. Sinha insisted that Pakistan would have to show sincerity. ‘‘If it (cross-border terrorism) is happening outside their control then our suggestion is let us cooperate. They are cooperating with other countries, let us discuss it and we will be able to devise some joint mechanism to deal with this problem.’’Sinha pointed out that Pakistan is cooperating with the US and has agreed to handover a large number of Al Qaeda terrorists. He expressed the hope Pakistan would similarly cooperate with India.As for talks with Pakistan, Sinha refused to speculate when and at what level they will take place. He said a five-point agenda has emerged in the contacts so far. Two of the five items on the agenda were suggested by India. Sinha pointed out that India has already appointed a new High Commissioner to Pakistan and will soon open its air space to Pak flights. He said India had not received any suggestion from Pakistan with respect to their High Commissioner in Delhi. India was not going to rush to talks, Sinha emphasised. ‘‘We want to move step-by-step.’’ Sinha came to London to take part in the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) to deliberate Pakistan’s readmission to the full membership of the Commonwealth. The CMAG rejected Pakistan’s call to be readmitted. The ministers agreed to monitor Pakistan’s return to representative democracy and report again at their next meeting in New York in September.
