Rome, 6 January 2005

Honorable Dr. Manmohan Singh
Office of the Prime Minister
Delhi, India

Dear Mr. Prime Minister,

I wish to express, on behalf of the Pugwash Community, our deepest condolences for the tragic sudden death of Hon. J.N. (Mani) Dixit, whom we were proud to consider a member of the Pugwash community, besides being an internationally well-known political leader, diplomat and scholar. Mani was an intelligent and inspirational figure; he was strongly committed to promoting dialogue and peace, and his commitment will inspire our activities for a long time to come.

The last memory I have of him was his active help in having our Kathmandu initiative on promoting dialogue on Kashmir go through. I wish to take this opportunity to warmly thank the government of India, and your Excellency in particular, for agreeing on our initiative to be held in Kathmandu.

It is sad to accept the reality of his untimely demise. Pugwash will miss Mani Dixit for his dynamism, valuable support, ideas and inspiration.

Please accept my very best regards.

Paolo Cotta Ramusino

Secretary-General
Pugwash Conferences