By IANS,
New Delhi : Describing India’s dossier on the Mumbai terror attacks as “totally credible”, a top French government security official said here Saturday that there was “need for full cooperation” by Pakistan.
Jean-David Levitte, the diplomatic adviser to the French president, was here on a day-long visit for the Indo-French Strategic Dialogue, during which he met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and National Security Adviser M.K. Narayanan.
India had prepared a dossier of evidence, showing that the conspiracy of the Nov 26 attacks had been hatched on Pakistan soil and that its perpetrators were Pakistani nationals. It handed over the dossier to Pakistan and shared its contents with other governments.
Levitte said that during his talks with the prime minister and the national security adviser, they had analysed the Mumbai attacks and suggested ways to fight terrorism together.
“We consider what has been given to us as totally credible. We have absolutely no reason to have any doubt on what was given to us by the government of India,” Levitte told reporters.
In fact, he went on to “pay tribute to those who prepared this evidence”.
“What was given to us is totally credible. We showed it to our intelligence agencies and in their judgement – and the judgement of the French government is that – we have absolutely no reason to believe that what we were given is not based on solid evidence,” he asserted.
On the role of Pakistani state agencies, he said the dossier did not make any mention of Pakistani official agencies being involved in the attacks.
Answering a query on reaction of Pakistan in the aftermath of the attack, Levitte referred to French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s speech to the diplomatic corps Friday, where he had noted that Pakistani state agencies must demonstrate the will to follow the top leadership’s statement to act against terror groups.
“In this remark, I see a kind of question mark (on Pakistan’s actions). His (President Sarkozy’s) message is that we hear words of (Pakistan) President (Asif Ali) Zardari. But at the same time, we want to be sure that all the state bodies, apparatus are totally implementing the policy that is mentioned,” he said.
The French official said his country had called for restraint and resumption of composite dialogue between India and Pakistan. India had pressed the ‘pause button’ of the dialogue process after the Mumbai attacks.
“It was a key ambition and it should remain a key ambition for two countries who have to live side by side,” said Levitte.
But he added, “before that, there is need for full cooperation from Pakistan.”
He refused to be drawn into the controversy if the Mumbai attack accused should tried in Pakistan or extradited, as demanded by India. “Justice must be delivered. Those who committed this act and those cooperated in the act must be punished in the severest way,” he said.