In a surprise move, Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has said he is ready for a dialogue with India without any preconditions with the objective of sustainable peace in the region. He also said Pakistan wants to maintain friendly relations with all its neighbours including India and Afghanistan.
According to Geo News, Sharif said this during his meeting with British Prime Minister David Cameron on the sidelines of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in the Maltese capital late on Friday.
While the Indian External Affairs Ministry was yet to react officially, sources said here on Saturday, the Indian Government will adopt a wait-and-watch policy before making up its mind over Sharif’s latest overtures to resume dialogue.
Elaborating upon this, they said Sharif had taken a U-turn after agreeing to hold talks on terrorism during his meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Ufa, Russia on July 10 this year. The Ufa declaration clearly stipulated that the dialogue will resume with National Security Advisors (NSA) of the two countries meeting in New Delhi in August.
However, the Pakistani Prime Minister after returning to Islamabad from Ufa said the talks will also include the Kashmir issue which did not figure in the Ufa declaration.
Sources said he was forced to do so under pressure from the all-powerful Pakistan Army and some ultra religious groups who are anti-India. Justifying India’s wait-and-watch policy before reacting, sources said the basis of the NSA-level talks was a discussion on terrorism and New Delhi will not abandon this stance.
The Pakistani Prime Minister’s latest offer came in the backdrop of tension between the two neighbours over continuing border firing and a series of ceasefire violations. It led to cancellation of scheduled talks between NSA Ajit Doval and his Pakistani counterpart Sartaj Aziz in August in New Delhi.
The Ufa declaration said the NSAs of the two countries will meet to discuss all issues connected to terrorism. This was to be followed by early meetings of the Director-General of Border Security Force (BSF) and chief of Pakistan Rangers followed by that of Director-Generals Military Operations (DGMOs).
The other features of the declaration included the decision to release fishermen in each other’s custody, along with their boats, within a period of 15 days and mechanism for facilitating religious tourism. Both sides also agreed to discuss ways and means to expedite the Mumbai case trial, including additional information like providing voice samples.
When the NSA-level talks were about to fail to materialize, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had said India will stick to the issue of terror only and the Kashmir issue will be discussed later. Blaming Pakistan for not honouring the spirit of Ufa declaration, she had also said the Kashmir issue never figured in the Ufa declaration.
Meanwhile, Sharif also said in CHOGM Pakistan condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and was deeply saddened by the recent terrorist attacks in Paris. He said Pakistan itself being a victim of terrorism could feel the pain of the French.