ISLAMABAD – It was only after the acceptance of India’s demand for alteration in the composite dialogue agenda that the ‘impasse’ between Islamabad and New Delhi over the stalled peace process could be removed recently in Bhutanese capital, Thimphu leading to the resumption of talks that came to a halt in November 2008 after the Mumbai terrorist attacks.
Before the Indo-Pak foreign secretaries’ meeting held in the beginning of this month in Thimphu, India had made it clear that it would resume talks only if the vital issue of “progress in the Mumbai trial and probe into terrorist attacks” shall be formally included in the eight-point composite dialogue agenda that the two-sides had been deliberating upon before the peace process was suspended.
Now, as the Indians demanded, the progress in the Mumbai trial would also be included in the dialogue as a part of talks on the earlier-stated agenda item of counter-terrorism. Hence, the two sides would now hold talks in future on Kashmir, peace and security including confidence-building measures, counter-terrorism with progress in the Mumbai trial included, humanitarian issues, promotion of friendly exchanges, Siachen, Sir Creek, economic issues and the Wullar Barrage/Tulbul navigation project.
“Not only the agenda of the composite dialogue has been altered a little but also in future there will be no mention of ‘composite dialogue’ as that was strictly confined to the eight subjects that Pakistan and India had discussed in the past before the Mumbai attacks,” a diplomatic source said.
He said if one went by the recent statements of Indian leaders and officials, they had already stopped the usage of the terminology of composite dialogue that told a lot itself. However, he said the rest of the format of the agenda would be the same as that was before the suspension of talks in 2008 with Kashmir and peace and security at the top.
When contacted, an official neither denied nor confirmed the alteration of dialogue agenda. He said in accordance with the agreement reached at during the meeting between Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir and his Indian counterpart Nirupama Rao in Thimphu, the neighbouring states were now working on devising schedule for talks on various agenda items of the Indo-Pak peace process.
He also dispelled the impression that the change of hands in the Pakistani foreign minister’s office had slowed down the ongoing Indo-Pak interaction at official level for devising schedule for the forthcoming meetings between the two countries on issues such as Siachen and Sir Creek etc.
He said Kashmir and peace and security would be deliberated upon as it was done before the peace process came to halt.
