'Aziz didn't want to be compared to Singh'

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July 18, 2005 16:14 IST

The sudden postponement of Pakistan Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz's visit to US, scheduled to take place later in July, may have been to avoid undue comparison with the high-profile welcome being given by the Bush administration to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

"Perhaps one un-stated reason for the postponement could have been the relatively different welcome that awaited Aziz," a local daily said in its comment.

Officials here admitted that Aziz's visit, which was to have taken place 10 days after that of Singh's, would have appeared starkly pale in comparison to that of Dr Singh's trip.

It appears that Pakistan, which has been declared a non-NATO ally by Washington for its cooperation in the war on terror, appeared cheesed off by the importance being accorded to Singh, daily Dawn said.

Aziz may not visit US in the near future as President Pervez Musharraf would be heading to New York in September to take part in the UN General Assembly meet.

The sudden postponement by Aziz was seen by diplomats here as an attempt by Pakistan to convey its dissent or resentment to Washington over the steady rise in profile of India-US relations.

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