SAARC and world leaders remember Atal Bihari Vajpayee

Even as India's tallest leader would be laid to rest on Friday, the world is going to come calling. There would be significant representation from various important nations, particularly from the SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) nations.

India Today has learnt that Pakistan's acting law and information minister Syed Zafar Ali will be travelling to Delhi representing Pakistan and will pay his respects to the honourable former Prime Minister of India. He will travel on a special aircraft and will leave for Delhi as soon as he gets his visa from the Indian High Commission in Islamabad. While visas are exempt for parliamentarians and ministers from SAARC nations, he is a minister with the caretaker government and might not have a SAARC sticker. He, therefore, will need a visa.

Others from SAARC nations who have confirmed their attendance are the foreign ministers of Bangladesh Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali, Nepal's Pradeep Gyawali and the acting Foreign Minister of Sri Lanka Lakshman Kiriella.

Messages have started pouring in from across the world. Nepal's Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli sent his message of condolence to Prime Minister Narendra Modi stating that Vajpayee "was a visionary statesman with impeccable integrity and dedication, who will be remembered for his sagacity and exemplary selfless service to the people of India."

Offering his sympathies to the family members the Nepalese Prime Minister said that in the demise of Vajpayee "India and the world has lost a towering political figure and Nepal a true friend and well-wisher."

Vajpayee's brave foreign policy decisions are not forgotten, especially his resolve to iron out differences with Pakistan.

Reminding the need to revive the SAARC institution, while offering condolences the Pakistani foreign office spokesperson said, "Mr. Vajpayee was a renowned statesman who contributed to bringing a change in India-Pakistan relations and remained a key supporter of SAARC and regional cooperation for development."

Sri Lankan leadership took to twitter to put out their first reactions. President Mathripala Sirisena said, "Today, we have lost a great humanist and a true friend of Sri Lanka. Former Prime Minister of India Atal Bihari Vajpayee was a visionary leader and an ardent defender of democracy. My condolences to his family and millions of his admirers around the world."

Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe remembered his association with the tall leader. "I have had the privilege of knowing Shri AB Vajpayee since 1975. Furthermore, we had a close working relationship during my tenure are Prime Minister from 2001 to 2004. He played a vital role in ensuring stability in Sri Lanka," he said in a statement.

Former President of Afghanistan Hamid Karzai who worked very closely with Vajpayee during the toughest years in Afghanistan's history said that India has lost "a great son of India, a respected world statesman, a friend of Afghanistan. I had the honour of working with him over several meetings and engagements. I respected him deeply for his humility, for his wisdom, for his courteous behaviour to me and all those who visited India. The greatest element in him was his desire for peace and stability in the region for which he worked with dedication and selflessness. We mourn his loss."

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in a message to PM Modi said, "Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee was our great friend and highly respected in Bangladesh. As a token of recognition for his invaluable contribution to our Liberation War in 1971, Bangladesh government conferred on him the Bangladesh Liberation War Honour. Today is certainly a day of great sadness for all of us in Bangladesh."

Among others were US, UK, Russia, China that also put our condolence messages.

UK High Commission in India tweeted, "We are saddened by the passing of former Prime Minister of India Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee. We will remember him as one of India's greatest leaders. Shri Vajpayee was much respected in the UK as a statesman par excellence - High Commissioner to India Dominic Asquith."

The US embassy in a statement said, "The United States grieves with India on the loss of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. He will be remembered for his immense contribution in bolstering US-India relations. During his tenure, Prime Minister Vajpayee advocated for a robust partnership with the United States, referring to us as natural allies. The US Mission in India extends our deepest condolences to the family of former Prime Minister Vajpaye and the citizens of India."

Speaking to India Today US envoy Kenneth Juster gave credit where it was due when he said, "He was a critical partner is the transformation of India-US relations. He played a central role first working with then President Clinton and later with President George W Bush during my time. So much of what we are celebrating today in terms of the relations really began with Prime Minister Vajpayee."

Each one defined Vajpayee as a "true friend" of their respective nations proving the deftness with which the Indian Prime Minister conducted his foreign policy.

"We knew him also as a poet, a man of knowledge and a true friend of our country, where he is well-known as one of the architects of our long-lasting and time-tested privileged strategic partnership," said Nikolay Kudashev, Ambassador of Russia to India in a statement.