Giving a guarded reaction to reports from Washington regarding lifting of some economic restrictions imposed by the US against India and Pakistan, an external affairs ministry spokesman said, "We have always maintained that such unilateral and coercive measures are unjustified and counter-productive, and should be lifted."

He said India had nothing against economic assistance to Pakistan and has consistently voted in the World Bank and other fora in favour of such assistance.

"The remarks attributed to US officials, however, reveal a selective and discriminatory approach which we find hard to understand and reconcile with," he said.

India, he said, had been engaged in an intensive dialogue on a range of issuesrelating to disarmament and non-proliferation with the US. "These discussions have led to a narrowing of gaps of perception. We note that according to press reports, it is in recognition of this that the United States has lifted some of the measures."

Washington's announcement comes on the eve of expert level talks with New Delhi commencing on Monday on issues relating to post-Pokhran developments.

India is of the firm view that all such measures, particularly those relating to lending by multilateral financial institutions, should go, the spokesman stressed."The multilateral institutions, in particular, are economic- and development-oriented organisations, and should not be misused for political purposes to suit the whims and preferences of particular countries," he said. A report from Washington said president Bill Clinton had decided to use new authority granted by Congress to waive some sanctions on India and Pakistan because of progress on the arms issues.