If not composite, India welcome to dialogue on Kashmir, says FO

ISLAMABAD: In a surprise but welcome move, Pakistan on Friday said that a decision was taken in the recent Envoys Conference that diplomatic initiatives will be taken towards India and the first step will be a formal letter by Foreign Secretary Aizaz Chaudhry inviting his counterpart Jaishankar for dialogue focusing on Indian-occupied Kashmir, if not comprehensive in nature.

It has been learnt that Pakistan will dispatch its formal offer to have a dialogue with India pertaining to the “dispute of Jammu and Kashmir” on Monday (August 15), India’s Independence Day.

Pakistan also says that if India is ready for the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT), then Pakistan is ready to give it the shape of an agreement.Kashmir would be on the top of the agenda of Pakistan during the forthcoming session of the UN General Assembly, to be addressed by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

Pakistan’s decision to engage with India comes at a time when on Friday the PTI reported that Pakistan’s top counter-terrorism agency had issued two alerts, warning about possible terror attacks by two Taliban suicide bombers at the Wagah and Ganda Singh borders with India around the Independence Day.

“The Envoys Conference noted that India’s policy of not engaging in a comprehensive dialogue with Pakistan was not conducive for peace in South Asia. The conference discussed a number of diplomatic initiatives being taken. In this regard, Pakistan should invite India for a dialogue on the Jammu and Kashmir dispute. Our foreign secretary would formally be writing to his counterpart in this regard,” Adviser on Foreign Policy, Sartaj Aziz, told a media briefing at the Foreign Office.

There has been no response to Aziz’s remarks from New Delhi but earlier this week Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, while blaming Pakistan for the unrest, addressed the Indian parliament on the Kashmir issue and said that India was willing to discuss only Pakistan-Occupied-Kashmir (POK) with Pakistan, and that the question of discussing Jammu and Kashmir with Islamabad just does not arise.

“The Envoys Conference noted that India’s policy of not engaging in a comprehensive dialogue with Pakistan was not conducive for peace in South Asia,” said Aziz.Blowing hot and cold, Aziz, while reaching out to New Delhi on Friday, had on Thursday written to the Arab League highlighting the ‘horrific’ Indian brutalities in Kashmir and asked its member countries to intervene. He had also pointed out that the current unrest in the valley was a “manifestation of continued and long-held alienation” of Kashmiris.

About the Indian involvement in subversive activities in Pakistan, the adviser said Pakistan has already shared a dossier on the issue with the world community and the UN, and the dossier would be updated before the next UN General Assembly Session.

“The arrested RAW agent Kalbhushan Yadev is being investigated as he was not alone and was working through an elaborate network,” he added.

Efforts are also being made to improve relations with Afghanistan, said Aziz but blamed the recent terrorist attack in Quetta on the Afghan intelligence agency — the National Directorate of Security (NDS) in collusion with RAW.

“We will notify Afghanistan that NDS and Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) should re-establish contact,” Aziz said, adding that “incidents like the Quetta attack can be avoided when intelligence agencies of both countries are in contact”.

The foreign affairs adviser said new guidelines had been set up regarding the Pak-Afghan ties and recommendations in this regard will be presented to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. “Following the premier’s approval, Pakistani and Afghan authorities will be in touch. There is a need for practical implementation of an understanding between Pakistan and Afghanistan for closer coordination between the ISI and NDS,” he added.

Meanwhile, Aziz said that Pakistan stood a good chance to be admitted to the Nuclear Suppliers Group, and there was positive progress on the issue of Pakistan’s membership in the NSG.

“We are formally inviting the NSG troika to visit Pakistan for a detailed briefing on our credentials. Moreover, we welcome any opportunity to engage bilaterally with interested NSG countries for a detailed presentation on the merits of our application,” he said.

Member countries appreciated Pakistan’s stance and believe that Pakistan and India should be granted the NSG membership together, he maintained.

“Our nuclear programme is consistent with international standards and Pakistan is fully capable of becoming an NSG member,” the foreign affairs adviser said, adding that “it adheres to the terms of public statement for nuclear tests as well”.

Aziz expressed the hope that Pakistan’s membership of the bloc would not be overlooked while India being given priority. “Instead of blocking India’s membership, Pakistan has proved it is many steps ahead of India in fulfilling the NSG requirements”.

According to sources in New Delhi, Arun Jaitley, Finance Minister, Minister of Corporate Affairs in the Cabinet of India, while reacting to Sartaj Aziz, said the Ministry of External Affairs would react when the time comes.

Diplomatic observers are of the view that it would be extremely difficult for New Delhi to discard Pakistan’s offer for having bilateral dialogue since India is under intense pressure from the world capitals to have talks with Pakistan for sorting out the unresolved disputes.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in an obnoxious manner, referred to the human rights situation in Balochistan where Indian-sponsored insurgents have already been consigned to graves.

At the same time, he has hinted at talking about Azad Kashmir. It is understood that it could be used as a face-saver prelude for initiating talks with Pakistan but the sources aren’t willing to give weight to this aspect of the assessment. The government will take a decision today (Saturday) about the conduit for mailing the letter to the South Block in New Delhi. The letter could be handed over to the Indian High Commissioner in Islamabad, Goutum Bambawala, for delivery who is present in the federal capital, the sources added.

Agencies add: India’s prime minister met the National Party leaders on Friday to seek ways to end weeks of unrest in Kashmir, but a separatist group said there would be no peace until Indian politicians stop treating it as a purely internal issue.

Police extended a curfew in parts of the Muslim-majority territory for a 35th day on Friday and mobile telephone networks were suspended from late on Thursday due to worries about fresh violence following the Friday prayers.

National opposition leaders have stepped up calls for an all-party delegation to visit Kashmir for talks with regional leaders. But Prime Minister Narendra Modi maintained a tough line on Friday, telling party leaders in New Delhi that now was not the time to send negotiators and that there must be no compromise on national security. He said Pakistan may tell a hundred lies but world will not believe it, a highly derogatory remark coming from a state leader indeed.

Modi’s BJP rules Kashmir in a power-sharing arrangement with a regional party and has long advocated a tough stance toward the decades-long insurgency. With 54 protesters killed since early July, one of the two factions of the main separatist alliance, the Hurriyat Conference, said there was no sign of anger abating.

“Unless there is an acknowledgement among all political parties in India that Kashmir is a dispute and not an internal issue and has to be addressed accordingly, there is very little chance of the situation improving or real peace returning,” said faction Chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq.