Indo-Pak Secy Level Talks To Resume Today

Pakistan is expected to focus on the Jammu and Kashmir issue at the third round of foreign secretary-level talks beginning in New Delhi today.

The discussions will focus on operationalising the mechanism agreed upon at the last round of talks for the commencement of concrete negotiations on the agenda with Jammu and Kashmir and peace and security gaining top priority, said a foreign office spokesman.

Pakistan considers Kashmir as the core issue which must be addressed urgently and effectively and a solution found in accordance with UN resolutions, he said.

Pakistans obsession with Kashmir can be gauged from foreign secretary Shamshad Ahmeds meeting on Saturday with leaders of various groups of Kashmir to draw up a strategy for the talks.

Ahmed, who is heading the Pakistan delegation, held talks with the Hurriyat Conference, Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF), Muslim Conference and the premier of Pak-occupied Kashmir Sultan Mahmood Choudhury.

The main purpose of inviting the Kashmiri leaders at the foreign ministry was to discuss with them the strategy to be adopted by the Pakistan delegation at the forthcoming talks, media reports quoted official sources as saying.

Although India agreed to discuss Kashmir by accepting it as the eight outstanding issues to be sorted out, Premier I K Gujral has said Kashmir is an integral part of India and no compromise is possible on that.

Pakistan had earlier accused India of backtracking on the issue of forming a joint working group on the Kashmir issue and had even alleged that India had resorted to unprovoked firing along the line of control (LoC)in Kashmir around the middle of last month.

Citing these reasons, Pakistan had nearly decided to back out of the dialogue process but last minute efforts succeeded in bringing it back to the negotiating table.

India, on the other hand, had alleged that firing along the LoC was started by the Pakistani army to infiltrate terrorists into the Indian side of Kashmir and claimed heavy casualty on the Pakistani side in the retaliatory firing.

Pakistan, however denied the army casualty figures but confirmed some civilian casualties.