General Powell on Kashmir, democracy, CTBT and more...

If there is one thing which General Colin Powell, United States former chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, cannot remain, it is tongue-tied.

Especially if hyperactive mediapersons are shooting questions every which way -- as it happened in Bombay, where the general (who, incidentally, is the first African-American to chair the JCS) was on a two-day official visit.

Journos fired without respite, but the former military officer was not cowed. He matched them burst for burst, bullet for bullet...

Thus, we have some of the general's comments, all made at the 1997 Citibank Leadership Lecture and at the media conference thereafter. On subjects as far-ranging as Kashmir, democracy, the Comprehensive (Nuclear) Test Ban Treaty and globalisation. Here are the nuggets:

The Kashmir-issue should be resolved bilaterally.

''The Kashmir problem is complex and the feelings are strong," the retired military officer said. "But both the countries should arrive at a peaceful solution at the earliest.''

India and Pakistan, he went on, should sit across the table and find an ever-lasting solution to it. He lauded the recent meeting between Prime Minister Inder Kumar Gujral and his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharief at New York.

"It is an encouraging sign," he said.

The general proved himself an ardent admirer of Mahatma Gandhi. The Gandhian qualities of leadership, he held, are the best ways to achieve peace and order in today's world.

As for the CTBT, the general advised India to assess its defence needs and arrive at a conclusion about signing it. He said with the piling up of nuclear weapons and their testing by 'several countries', the world's safety was at stake. CTBT would remedy that.

Democracy, General Powell strongly believed, is the best system of governance in the world.

"It is a very difficult system," he said. "It is not a steamship, but a life-raft. It goes up and down along with the waves and goes with the wind, but never sinks."

Democracy follows moral values, he said. He was confident that India would emerge a major power in the next century if it continued to religiously follow democratic principles.

India has the largest and most vibrant democracy, rich heritage and culture and very good intellectual capital, he conceded.

''Believe in the democratic system. Root out corruption and see the results,'' the general said.

On globalisation, too, General Powell was equally expansive. "To reap the fruits of liberalisation one has to face difficulties including severe currency problems," he proclaimed. "Leaders of the Asia-Pacific should design suitable strategies and adopt them accordingly."

After India's stepping into the liberalised world in 1991, he said it had gone through difficult stages and faced various challenges -- but these are just passing phases which every growing power has to transcend. Once these were covered, no doubt India would emerge a powerful nation.

UNI