New Delhi: India on Saturday said the execution of former Iraqi dictator was an “unfortunate event” and it was indeed "disappointed". "We hope that this unfortunate event will not affect the process of reconciliation, restoration of peace and normalcy in Iraq," said External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee in a statement.
“We had already expressed the hope that the execution would not be carried out. We are disappointed that it has been,” the statement said.
New Delhi had opposed the death sentence awarded to Hussein, saying that the deposed Iraqi leader must be spared.
Minister of State for External Affairs Anand Sharma said India has never endorsed "anything" that has happened in Iraq in the recent times and termed Saddam’s hanging as a "wrongful" act.
Maintaining that Hussein's execution will not help in the process of normalisation in Iraq, he said that the entire world now hopes to see government in Baghdad and the forces join hands to give priority to reconciliation and an end to violence.
He, however, insisted that the hanging cannot be linked with Indo-US relations which are growing. "I don't think, you can link one issue to another," he said.
Emphasising that the government had never been soft on the Iraq issue, Sharma said, "India has an independent foreign policy. We convey our position very clearly."
But "as far as closeness (with the US) is concerned, yes, we are engaged with the US as other countries," he added.
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