Singh has no clue of my constraints: Zardari told Jones

Praising Singh as an "excellent economist", Zardari told the then National Security Advisor Gen (rtd) James Jones in a meeting in Islamabad on June 25, 2009 that the Indian Prime Minister was unaware of what it took to change the mindset of the Pakistani establishment.

Such a discussion took place in Islamabad on June 25, 2009 when Jones leading a delegation from the National Security Council met Zardari and other Pakistani officials.
The secret cable that gives details of the meeting was release by WikiLeaks yesterday.

"Zardari signaled that there had been some progress in his talks with Indian PM Singh in Russia, even though he had noted earlier that India's military capacity was ten-fold Pakistan's," it said.

He regretted not being able to meet Singh at the upcoming Sharm el-Sheikh summit and said, "unfortunately, PM Gilani had already announced he would be going to Sharm," the cable said.

"In his meeting with Singh, said Zardari, he had underscored that 'there could not be a better political moment' to improve relations across the board," it said.

India was a mature democracy and an ancient nation, said Zardari."Singh is an excellent economist," he said.

Zardari, however, was not convinced that the Indian Prime Minister understood the constraints under which the President was operating, said the cable signed off by the then US Ambassador to Pakistan Anne Patterson.

"Helping Singh to understand them was of import," hinted Zardari.

"NSC Senior Director Don Camp said the Indian perspective was to question the government of Pakistan activism and to ask what it had done to quash terrorist organisations," the cable said, adding Jones reminded Zardari how important it was to ensure there was not another Mumbai-style attack.

Zardari reiterated that Singh was unaware of what it took to "change the mindset of Pakistan's establishment, given Pakistan's short history of fragile democratic regimes toppled by the military," it said.

In another cable the US Embassy in Pakistan said the June 16 meeting between Zardari and Singh in Russia was marred by what the Pakistani side viewed as Singh's "rudeness" in telling the press in front of Zardari that he was only charged with speaking to the President about the use of Pakistani soil by terrorists aimed at India.