New Delhi: India on Friday rejected US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice’s statement that the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) had “lost its meaning” and made it clear that it would continue with the group.
"We don't believe that the (NAM) movement has lost its relevance. It has acquired contemporary relevance in fostering cooperation among developing nations, particularly known as South-South cooperation," External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said in Jalpaiguri in West Bengal.
"India is a founding member of NAM and believes that the movement has contributed substantially to the struggle against colonialism and apartheid policies in the post-Second World War period," he was quoted by PTI as saying.
Mukherjee was responding to a statement by Rice in Washington in which she said: “I know there are some who still talk about non-alignment in foreign policy. But may be that made sense during the Cold War when the world really was divided into rival camps.”
“It has lost its meaning,” she said, adding “one is aligned not with the interests and power of one bloc or another but with the values of a common humanity.
She suggested that New Delhi “move past old ways of thinking and old ways of acting" to strengthen Indo-US relations.
Mukherjee said India interested in increasing ties with the US, but “there is no apparent contradiction in expanding cooperation and democracy of the world and NAM.”
The CPI-M, an important ally of the government, chided the US for questioning NAM’s relevance and demanded a "clear and categorical" statement from the UPA government that it does not need to be lectured on foreign policy.
"The US is signalling to India not to play an active role in NAM, which has got Cuba as its current chairman. The message is being conveyed along with the assurance that the nuclear cooperation agreement can be finalized provided India understands the parameters of the 'strategic alliance' with the United States," the party said in a statement.
"The UPA government should also realise that the country is closely watching the course of the nuclear cooperation talks and will not countenance any compromise under US pressure," the party said.
The CPI, the second important Left ally of the government, sked the government to "rebuff the American move, assert its independent foreign policy and its commitment to the NAM".
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