New Delhi: The Congress Party on Saturday said that the joint statement between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Pakistan counterpart Nawaz Sharif has been 'blown to smithereens' after Pakistan Finance Minister Ishaq Dar's controversial remark that New Delhi should not cast an evil eye on Islamabad's economic prosperity.
"The statement of the Pakistan Finance Minister on the floor of the Senate has absolutely blown the joint statement between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to smithereens. He has not only said that India is casting an evil eye on Pakistan's economy, but also said that our eyes are not closed, we have no love lost for India and we are not beggars. So the underlying sub text is that we don't trust India. India can go and take a walk. And, India also doesn't trust Pakistan. Therefore the joint statement that was signed yesterday is not worth the paper it was written on," Congress leader Manish Tewari told ANI here.
Highlighting that China-Pakistan Economic Corridor has grave implications on international security, Tewari said: "Primarily, China is trying to surmount the Malacca dilemma...The larger implication of this is that if China is able to surmount the Malacca dilemma, it will turn the South China sea into a Chinese lake and that will have implications on the strategic lines of commerce which India needs to keep open. So India must use all instruments at its disposal: diplomatic, strategic, tactical, coercive, to see that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor does not become a reality."
As Prime Minister Narendra Modi met his Pakistan counterpart Nawaz Sharif for ice-breaking talks in Ufa, Russia, back home Pakistan Finance Minister Ishaq Dar warned India of a "befitting response" in case of any aggression.
"Pakistan's next-door neighbour India could not digest Pak-China Economic Corridor project deal," Dar said.
