NEW DELHI, May 29: Prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on Friday assured Pakistan that it faced no threat from India and renewed the offer to conclude an agreement with Islamabad for `no first use' of nuclear weapons.Replying to a two-day debate in the Rajya Sabha on the nuclear tests conducted by India and Pakistan, Vajpayee said, "We do not want ill of Pakistan. I want to remove doubts that we want to destroy Pakistan." India wanted Pakistan to prosper, he said adding that both countries faced similar problems and challenges.
It was necessary in such a situation to create an atmosphere of peace and, therefore, India had offered to engage in a dialogue with Pakistan, he said.Vajpayee, however, warned that any attempt by Pakistan to occupy Jammu & Kashmir through the strength of arms would not succeed.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
