India denies breach of trust in letter diplomacy

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and India this week resorted to “letter diplomacy”, with New Delhi on Saturday completely dismissing Pakistan’s complaints that there had been a breach of trust resulting in the death of two Pakistani Rangers on December 31.
Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj wrote to Sartaj Aziz, Prime Minister’s Advisor on Foreign Affairs and National Security, in response to his letter sent to her on Friday.
Talking to The News, the Foreign Office spokesman acknowledged the receipt of Swaraj’s letter but said she had no comments for the time being.
Pakistan says when its soldiers were moving towards the Indian side for a flag meeting, they came under Indian fire and lost their lives on the Working Boundary. Aziz in his letter asked India to probe the matter.
He had pointed out that the ambush of soldiers would undermine mechanisms established by the two countries to ensure peace and tranquility along the LoC and the Working Boundary. Dismissing contentions made by Aziz, Swaraj emphasised that Pakistani commanders responded to Indian defensive fire by escalating matters by using higher caliber weapons, expanding the zone of conflict to other sub-sectors and targeting civilian habitations.
“The incidents on 31st December in Jammu sector commenced when a routine BSF patrol flying an identifying flag came under sniper fire from a Pakistan Border Post, which resulted in the death of one Indian security personnel and serious injuries to another,” Swaraj wrote.
“At no stage did the Indian side seek any platoon level contact under a white flag as was being suggested. The consistent Indian message conveyed to Pakistan was that if they were to stop firing on Indian Border Posts, India would immediately end defensive firing.
“Unfortunately, the Pakistani commanders had chosen to ignore this advice until the evening. India always adhered to the mechanisms that have been evolved to ensure peace and tranquility on the International Border (IB) and Line of Control (LOC) and would continue to do so,” the letter said. Swaraj asked Aziz “to ensure that Pakistan’s forces do the same”.