Pakistan rejects Mumbai attacks onus

Pakistan and India ended two days of peace talks on Thursday, vowing to keep their dialogue on track despite renewed tensions over the alleged role of Pakistani “state actors” in the 2008 Mumbai attacks.
The same day, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said his side was giving a serious thought to visiting Pakistan, but the tour would be no good if it did not pay off.
“I believe a visit to Pakistan that does not bear fruit would be of no use,” he said. The talks between Indian Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai and his Pakistani counterpart Jalil Abbas Jilani covered terrorism, confidence-building measures and the South Asian rival’s core territorial dispute over Kashmir. The two top civil servants in their respective ministries said they would meet again in Islamabad to pave the way for foreign minister-level talks in September.
The talks in New Delhi were clouded by charges arising from India’s recent arrest of Sayed Zabiuddin Ansari, suspected of being a key handler for the Mumbai attackers who killed 166 people in India’s financial capital. India says Ansari has admitted helping to coordinate the deadly assault from a command post in Karachi, and his testimony has renewed Indian accusations that “state elements” in Pakistan were involved.
At a joint news conference, Jilani insisted the charge was baseless. “I would very strongly reject any insinuation of any involvement of any state agency in acts of terrorism in India,” Jilani said.
“If we keep accusing each other that will be of no benefit, and we will not find any result,” he added. His remarks were a response to specific allegations leveled on Wednesday – as the foreign secretary talks began – by Indian Home Minister P Chidambaram who argued that Ansari’s evidence could only lead to one conclusion. “It is no longer possible to deny that though the incident happened in Mumbai, there was a control room in Pakistan before and during the incident,” Chidambaram said. “It is clear that (Pakistani) state actors were there,” he added. Pakistan has indicted seven people for their alleged role in the Mumbai attacks but their trial, which began in 2009, has been beset by delays.

Addressing Thursday’s news conference, Mathai stressed that bringing those guilty for the Mumbai carnage to justice “would be the biggest confidence-building measure of all”. “We shall pursue this matter to its logical conclusion,” Mathai said of the Indian investigation into Ansari’s testimony.
Jilani insisted nothing should be allowed to prevent the peace process going forward. “There should be absolutely no setback, because a setback is something we cannot afford,” he said.
“Terrorism is a common threat to both India and Pakistan because citizens in both countries are facing terror,” Jilani said. “I, my government and my people are very serious about this… Terrorism is a serious issue. We need serious and sincere efforts to resolve it,” he said.
Jilani said his talks with Mathai on peace and security, CBMs, Jammu and Kashmir and promotion of friendly exchanges have been substantive. “Both the countries face threat of terrorism. We should intensify our cooperation,” he said. Expressing the hope that the equation would continue with the “positive trajectory”, Jilani said he had also put forward some suggestions on resuming cricketing ties.
A joint statement issued at the conclusion of two day meet said the talks were held in a frank and constructive atmosphere. Both sides reiterated their desire to carry forward the dialogue process in a purposeful and result-oriented manner.
It said the foreign secretaries reviewed the ongoing implementation of the already adopted Nuclear and Conventional CBMs. It was decided that separate meetings of the Expert Level Groups on Nuclear and Conventional CBMs will be held to discuss implementation and strengthening of the existing CBMs and suggest additional mutually acceptable steps that could build greater trust and confidence between the two countries, thereby contributing to peace and security. The dates for the meetings of Expert Level Groups will be determined through diplomatic channels.
The two sides also agreed to continue meaningful dialogue on the thorny Kashmir issue. They decided to convene a meeting of the Working Group on Cross-LoC CBMs on July 19 in Islamabad to recommend steps for strengthening and streamlining and effectively implementing the existing trade and travel arrangements and propose modalities for introducing additional cross-LoC CBMs.
The foreign secretaries will meet again in Islamabad, on a date to be decided through diplomatic channels, to prepare for the meeting of the external affairs/foreign ministers in September 2012, the joint statement said.