KTHMANDU, Nov. 1, Reuter: India has poured cold water on Bangladeshi plans for a South Asian fund to attract investment from outside the region.
Speaking in advance of Monday’s regional summit, Minister of State for External Affairs K. Natwar Singh made clear on Saturday that India would have no truck ‘with the idea.
But he issued a strong call for the South Asian’ Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) to move into the vital area of economic development.
The appeal was echoed by Srilanka and Bangladesh in statements at the start of two days of talks between foreign ministers of the seven member states.
SAARG, founded at the end of 1985, is the World’s youngest regional organization and also includes Pakistan, Bhutan, Maldives, and Nepal.
Bangladesh, which has been one ‘of the most enthusiastic proponents of expanding the association’s scope, had proposed setting up a multi-sectoral investment institution to attract financing from both inside and outside South Asia.
Some Indian press commentators have condemned the idea as an attempt by the smaller countries in the impoverished region to profit from India’s credit worthiness with international financial institutions and banks.
India with 800 million people, more than three times the other six countries put together, dominates the region economically and politically.
Natwar Singh said that neocolonialism was even more powerful than the colonialism of the past and that India would not depart from its cautious policy towards foreign assistance.
Article extracted from this publication >> November 6, 1987
