New Delhi:
India and Italy continue to circle each other warily over how to handle the deaths of two Indian fishermen, who were shot at sea by Italian marines.
Italy's foreign minister Giulio Terzi met with SM Krishna, India's External Affairs minister this morning in Delhi. Mr Terzi expressed his regret over the deaths, but underscored that Italy wants the matter to be resolved using the laws of international waters - Italian officials say this means the marines should be tried at home. But India says its own laws apply as the incident took place within its waters. Mr Krishna said today that "there is strong public opinion on both sides. Minister Terzi and I agreed that we need to clear the air, so people in both countries are reassured of our will and commitment to strengthen our partnership. We are of the view that our relations are mature and based on strong foundations. This gives us the ability to address challenges together. India values its relationship with Italy".
The marines who were guarding a merchant vessel named the Enrica Lexie off the Kochi coast allegedly mistook the fishermen for Somalian pirates. They are under arrest in Kerala, a move that Italy has described as coercive and unilateral.
The deaths of the fishermen have provoked anger and resentment among the considerable fishing community of Kochi. Sources say the Italian foreign minister will travel there later today and may offer compensation to the families of the men who were killed.
The Kerala High Court - which today heard a petition filed by one of those families seeking compensation - in an interim order asked the owners of the Italian ship to furnish a bank guarantee of Rs 3 crore. The order which was pronounced by a division bench of the High Court also said that the ship could leave Indian shores only after approval from the investigating agencies.