If the UPA government was looking for any signals tonight from Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf that might have allowed a revival of the stalled peace process, India could only have been disappointed.

Musharraf’s promise, in his address to Pakistan which he knew was going to be heard by India and the international community, to “cooperate fully” with New Delhi and to “help fight those responsible for such a big terrorist act”, in Mumbai is unlikely to meet Indian concerns about Pakistan’s continued support to cross-border terrorism.

That this promise was conditioned on India providing evidence on the involvement of elements from across the border in the Mumbai massacre would only add to New Delhi’s political irritation.

“If you give us proof, evidence on who are behind the blasts, we will fully cooperate,” Musharraf said in a televised speech.

In his address to the nation last week after he visited Mumbai, and since, Singh has been reminding Pakistan of its commitment under the January 6, 2004 statement not to let terrorists use its territory for attacks against India.

A reaffirmation of that commitment by Musharraf tonight could have gone some distance towards assuaging India’s concerns.

Beyond a verbal reaffirmation, India was also looking for some actions on the ground by Musharraf against the Lashkar-e-Toiba. There was no hint of it either from Musharraf’s speech.

Senior Indian officials say the LeT is responsible for nearly 80 per cent of terrorist acts in India. Given the reality that the LeT is a creature of the Inter Services Intelligence in Pakistan, India finds incredible the assertions of the Pak Army that it has no control over the group.

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