Britain on Tuesday rejected any comparison between the nuclear test conducted by North Korea and India acquiring nuclear weapon.
Prime Minister Tony Blair told reporters after discussions with his Indian counterpart Dr Manmohan Singh that the North Korean situation was 'very different' because that country was in breach of international obligations.
Dr Singh also said that Pyongyong was in violation of international obligations and there was no parallel between the test conducted by North Korea and India.
The prime minister said India did not want the emergence of another nuclear weapon state as this was not 'in the country's interest.' In an obvious reference to Pakistan, he said India's own security had suffered because of 'clandestine proliferation emanating from its neighbourhood.'
He pointed out that New Delhi had expressed its concern over the North Korean nuclear test as it did not want further erosion of non-proliferation system. India, he said, had supported the six-party talks aimed at persuading North Korea not to go ahead with the weaponisation.
Firmly rejecting any comparison between India and North Korea, Blair said that India had been strongly adhering to its international obligations while North Korea has been 'going the other way round.'
"North Korea is very much a separate case," he said, adding: "The tragedy of North Korea is not just the nuclear test but the fact that its people are living in oppression, mass poverty and starvation."
