Rajnath advocates joint US-India sanctions against Pak

BJP president Rajnath Singh today called for joint economic sanctions by United States and India against the Islamic nation, which has become a sanctuary to Jihadi mercenaries and a cradle of global terrorism.

Saying that war with Pakistan is the "last option", BJP president Rajnath Singh today called for joint economic sanctions by United States and India against the Islamic nation, which he said has become a sanctuary to Jihadi mercenaries and a cradle of global terrorism.

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"The UPA government considers the US as India's strategic partner after signing the Indo-US civilian nuclear deal. It is high time that the Centre uses its diplomatic channels with United States to stop all financial assistance to Pakistan and work jointly to impose economic sanctions against it," Rajnath told a press conference here.

He said the US aid to Pakistan is nearly US$ 2 billion a year. Recently, US was instrumental in the International Monetary Fund providing US$ 7.6 billion package to save Pakistan from Bankruptcy.

"According to credible media reports published in US dailies, Pakistan has been diverting the monetary assistance from Western countries to fund terrorist modules against India," the BJP leader said.

He said Pakistan leadership has also admitted that "non-state players" were involved in the Mumbai attacks last month. "Pakistan is a nuclear-weapon state. The international community must take cognizance of the fact that it cannot control the non-state actors operating in the country. It is also important to note whether Pakistan's nuclear weapons are a threat to world peace," he added.