Singh, Bush agree to fight terror, arms proliferation

First meeting between PM, US President 'friendly, relaxed'

Setting out the roadmap for the Indo-US strategic partnership, President George W Bush and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday decided to work closely in the war against terrorism and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, asserting that stronger ties between the two countries would enhance global security and prosperity.

In their maiden hour-long meeting at the presidential suite at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel here, Bush showed "understanding and appreciation" of India's concerns over cross-border terrorism and proliferation while extending support to the ongoing Indo-Pak dialogue process.

A joint statement on the "US-India partnership: Cooperation and trust" issued after the talks said both leaders agreed that a stronger partnership between the two countries, acting in concert in international institutions, would enhance global security and prosperity.

Briefing reporters on the interaction, Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran said the meeting was "very warm, friendly and relaxed".

The Prime Minister noted that this was one of the few bilateral meetings Bush was having during his short stay here which was a testimony to the importance the US attached to strengthening relations with India.

Bush will also be having a breakfast meeting with Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf here tomorrow. Musharraf will address the UN General Assembly session tomorrow.

The Prime Minister would speak at the world body on September 23 and have a bilateral meeting with Musharraf the next day.

The two leaders exchanged thoughts on their shared global concerns and agreed that making the world a safer place was an "overriding priority".

"They recognised the importance of working closely together in the war against terrorism and in combating proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their delivery systems," the statement said.

Asked about cooperation in missile defence, Saran said the two sides were talking about "evolving partnership" in this area.

The two leaders affirmed their commitment to carry the NSSP (Next Steps in Strategic Partnership) process forward. "With the NSSP, we talked about the two countries cooperating in terms of missile defence. It is also recognised that there is a significant increase in military-to-military contacts which have been tremendous between the two countries," he said.

In response to a question, Saran said the US policy did not focus attention just on terrorism but also in terms of building different set of democratic values beyond the struggle against terrorism.

He said India and the US, both vibrant democracies, shared democratic values and these were the basis for working closely with each other.