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Nuke document won't hit Indo-US ties: PM

Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee said today that the announcement of the nuclear doctrine would not in anyway affect the relations with the United States which had shown improvement recently.

Addressing the media at the Thiruvananthapuram airport on his arrival on his way to Nagercoil for electioneering, Vajpayee said he did not think that the announcement of the doctrine had caused any setback to the ties with the US.

He said ever since the Pokhran blasts which made India a nuclear weapon state, there had been a demand that the country come out with its nuclear policy.

There were a number of questions to be considered on matters relating to the use of nuclear weapons. So the draft had been published for public debate. Even in the case of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty it had been made clear that it was for the new government to take a decision.

He said he did not see anything wrong in coming out with the draft nuclear policy.

On Kargil, Vajpayee said all intruders had been evicted though there had been terrorist activities in some parts of Kashmir. These would be sternly dealt with, he added.

UNI

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