Deputy Prime Minister Lal Kishenchand Advani on Sunday asserted that India would emerge victorious in the decade-old proxy war Pakistan was engaging in Jammu and Kashmir.

He made this statement while addressing the audience at a reception hosted in his honour by Indian Ambassador in the US Lalit Mansingh in Washington.

Drawing sustained applause, Advani pointed out that in the three wars with Pakistan, where Pakistan was the aggressor, India had always emerged victorious.

Taking a swipe at the US for its benevolent attitude towards Pakistan, he said no democracy should support countries that help international terrorism to survive.

Advani predicted that the National Democratic Alliance government would win the general election next year.

In an attempt to defuse the leadership controversy that erupted on the eve of his departure to the US, he insisted that Vajpayee would continue to be the prime minister for many more years.

Advani pointed out that Vajpayee was the first non-Congress and only the third prime minister after Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi to complete a term of five years post-independence.

He said not only had the Vajpayee government ensured stability in the country, but had eliminated past problems, among others that of shortage of telephone and gas connections.

"It's not the problem of scarcity today, it's a problem of abundance; and all this has come about in the last 4-5 years."
Praising the continuing achievements of the NRIs, Advani hoped the achievements of Indians abroad could be replicated at home.

He assured the audience that the dual citizenship bill, which was before the standing committee of Parliament, would be enacted soon and NRIs and PIOs residing in countries that offer reciprocity like the US, the United Kingdom and Canada would be eligible for dual citizenship.

Earlier, introducing Advani to the over 500 members of the Indian American community from across the country and in introducing Advani, Mansingh said, "This is the first time ever a deputy prime minister has come to the United States on an official visit."

"That's why this visit assumes special importance," Mansingh said and described Advani as a 'made of a special alloy' and noted that he is 'known as a man of steel'.

Advani arrived at the reception in the Durga temple in Fairfax Station, Virginia after his meeting with Rumsfeld.