HVK Archives: Taliban takeover concern for whole region: British High Commissioner
Taliban takeover concern for whole region: British High Commissioner - The Indian Express
Sandeep Unnithan
()
7 October 1996
Title : `Taliban takeover concern for whole region': British High
Commissioner
Author : Sandeep Unnithan
Publication : The Indian Express
Date : October 7, 1996
The British High Commissioner to India David Gore-Booth
said that last week's takeover of Afghanistan by the
Taliban militia has worried all the countries of the
region including Iran, Russia and India.
Gore-Booth, who was in the city, spoke to Express News
line on Friday about his experiences six months after
assuming office in Delhi.
While Iran had found itself 'out fundamentalised' by the
Taliban, Russia was worried about the spread of the
Taliban into Tajikistan and India concerned about the
fallout on Kashmir, he observed. Russia agreed to forti-
fy Tajikistan's borders with Afghanistan while Iran
condemned the Taliban fundamentalism.
"The early signs are not good. It is possible that the
Taliban victory will lead to a further split in Afghanis-
tan both socially and politically," he said. Socially
through the strict imposition of Shariat, and politically
through its differences with the other groups.
He hoped the Taliban would see the advantage of seeking a
political solution and involving the United Nations in
the rebuilding of Afghanistan which had functioned like a
black hole in the region, with its lawlessness and drug
trafficking problems.
Besides starting out in the British foreign service at
the young age of 21 in 1963, the High Commissioner has
another rare achievement to his credit. He occupies the
same post held by his father the late Lord Core-Booth in
1964.
"I didn't expect to achieve the same dizzying heights
that my father did," he smiled. But there were differ-
ences in the roles of father and son he explained. "The
British High Commission then was deeply involved in
Indian politics. But now I wouldn't dream of getting
involved in Kashmir," he said.
Also coming with the job are responsibilities that didn't
occur to him in the 60s when he visited India as a care-
free Oxford student, like negotiating for the release of
jailed British model Samantha Slater in Thrissur, to
ascertaining the fate of British hostages taken by mili-
tant groups in Kashmir last year - both raging issues
back home. Rack then he was more interested in sightsee-
ing and the comforts of the British High Commission.
Though there were 'difficult years' in the relationship
between, the two countries, a division of political and
economic views whey India adopted a non-aligned an
sometimes' pro-Soviet line and went in for the socialist
economy, ties between the two countries did not weaken,
he said. Now there remained only small philosophical
issues between the two countries like the pace of econom-
ic reforms in India.
Stating that the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) was
a step towards a nuclear free world, he hoped that In-
dia's views on not signing the treaty would change.
Britain shared a close relationship with India on ex-
changing information on counter terrorism since both
countries had suffered from it. In fact, there were
close parallels between the situation in Kashmir and
North Ireland, he said.
Kashmir had seen seven years of the security process and
finally the political- process had begun. Expressing
happiness at the peaceful passage of the assembly elec-
tions, he said a heavy responsibility now rested on
Farooq Abdullah's shoulders to engage in a dialogue with
the central government.
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