Giving thrust to bilateral confidence building measures on the Sino-India border, a delegation of Chinese army on Wednesday joined their Indian counterparts in celebrating India's Independence Day at the border post in Nathu La.
The army on Friday made it clear to Pakistan that it cannot keep the tap of exporting terrorism to India open and hope for confidence-building measures with it.
Hailing the "new era" of cooperation in Indo-Pak ties, the Pakistani media on Thursday said the two sides have revived the pursuit of an "uninterruptible" dialogue process as their foreign ministers held substantive talks, including on Kashmir-centric confidence-building measures to ease trade and travel across the Line of Control.
Carrying forward its peace initiative with Pakistan, India on Wednesday proposed a number of measures, including launching a bus service between Srinagar and Muzaffarabad and full sporting links between the two countries.
Pakistan is considering a proposal to limit oil imports from India to 5-10 per cent of the total requirement till confidence-building measures between the two countries take root, according to a media report.
India on Friday made it clear to Pakistan that resolution of the Kashmir issue cannot take place under the "shadow of gun" as the two countries concluded "satisfactory" talks which resulted in agreement on various confidence building measures.
Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao, who arrived in Islamabad on Thursday on a two-day visit, began talks on Friday with her Pakistani counterpart Salman Bashir on Kashmir. The two-day talks have been divided into three segments under which the issue of peace and security, including confidence-building measures, was discussed on Thursday. After Jammu and Kashmir, the talks will be held on the promotion of friendly exchanges
Michael Krepon, longtime arms control guru and the godfather of promoting confidence building measures in South Asia, believes the only panacea for nuclear risk reduction in South Asia after Mumbai is cooperation in counter-terrorism between New Delhi and Islamabad, but acknowledges it may be utterly quixotic.
"India exercises with whomever it chooses to and it does not give a veto to third countries on these issues," the External Affairs Ministry spokesperson said.
The airline hopes to gain credibility in the market with infusion.
At a two-day bi-annual meeting between the Pakistan Rangers and Border Security Force on issues related to border management, the two sides agreed that peace be maintained along the Line of Control and the international border in Jammu and Kashmir.
Ahead of Premier Wen Jiabao's upcoming visit, India on Friday hoped that China realises the need to show more sensitivity on core issues that impinge on the country's 'sovereignty and territorial integrity', as raised by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao said the two countries were also putting in place more confidence building measures to tackle the vexed boundary issue, for which India is making a serious attempt.
Riaz Mohammad Khan said Jammu and Kashmir was 'disputed' and should not be 'mixed' with the initiative, which is between India and Pakistan only.
On her maiden visit to Pakistan after assuming office, Clinton said the Obama administration believes the most durable possible outcomes of any kind of resolution or normalisation can only come from the two countries themselves.
'You think: Did I fail the people I had to let go? Did I promise something I couldn't deliver? That day (when we had to sack 70 people) will stay with me.'
Describing terrorism as a "common menace," Pakistan Wednesday agreed to fight it jointly with India and gave a commitment for maintaining ceasefire on the Line of Control. After extensive talks between External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee and his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mahmood Qureshi, the two sides also reported progress on Kashmir, Siachen and Sir Creek issues and expressed willingness to push forward the confidence building measures.
External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee met Pakistan People's Party co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari at Islamabad on Wednesday. Mukherjee arrived in Pakistan on a two-day official visit on Tuesday, to hold talks with his counterpart Shah Mahmood Qureshi, in India's first high-level contact with the new government. Qureshi and Mukherjee are expected to discuss various issues including terrorism, Kashmir, exchange of prisoners, bilateral trade and confidence building measures.
Pakistan and India are likely to announce new Kashmir-related confidence-building measures, including an increase in the number of trading points along the Line of Control.
India has provided Pakistan further details about involvement of Jamaat-ud-Dawaa chief Hafiz Saeed in Mumbai terror attacks on the basis of disclosures made by Pakistani-American Lashker operative David Headley and made it clear that action against him and other handlers would be a major confidence building measure.
"By such pronouncements, the BJP leader was undermining the very reconciliation process pioneered by the then Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee and carried forward by Dr Manmohan Singh," Mufti said while addressing party workers in Jammu.
According to various global media reports, China is creating Covid-like pathogens in Pakistan that have the potential of causing virus contamination on a scale far higher than Covid.
Pakistani Foreign Minister Mahmood Qureshi has said that there has been trust deficit between India and Pakistan, and that it has to be bridged at the earliest.
"The conclave is part of atmosphere-building without which confidence-building measures like the one proposed by the political leadership of India and Pakistan will not succeed," military analyst General Ashok K Mehta said.
Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi will undertake a three-day visit to India from November 26 during which the two countries are expected to discuss terrorism, Kashmir issue and confidence-building measures.
The government on Wednesday announced withdrawal of a 'significant' number of battalions of the Central forces from Jammu and Kashmir in a noteworthy confidence- building measure following the initiative for holding 'quiet' dialogue with the separatist groups.
Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has invited Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to visit Pakistan, while the latter renewed his invitation to the former to visit India during their meeting in New York. Briefing reporters, Foreign Secretary Shiv Shankar Menon said both leaders accepted each other's invitation, but dates have not been decided yet.
'The dialogue process is just too inadequate to meet the challenges from Pakistan,' says former R&AW chief A K Verma.
Though the main focus of talks between Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon and his Pakistani counterpart Salman Bashir is on peace and security, Jammu and Kashmir and CBMs, other issues like release of prisoners, visa relaxation, trade and commerce will also come up for discussions.
The Cabinet Committee on Security is meeting in New Delhi on Friday, two days after the return of an all-party delegation from Jammu and Kashmir.
Vice-President Hamid Ansari, who had served as the chairman of a committee which favoured withdrawal of Armed Forces Special Powers Act, on Saturday said the prime minister would take a decision on the matter.
Some measures such as visa liberalisation and free medical treatment of Pakistani children had been implemented unilaterally by India.
Pakistan will move forward to resolve the Kashmir issue with India through a peaceful dialogue and the nation's new government will continue confidence-building measures initiated by the previous regime, Pakistan People's Party co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari said on Friday.
As India and Pakistan gear up for a meeting of their foreign ministers to nudge forward the bilateral peace process, the two sides will have to focus on key issues like terrorism and Kashmir and put in place new confidence-building measures, the Pakistani media has said.
The lists were simultaneously handed over in New Delhi and in Islamabad by the respective countries under an agreement the two countries initiated on December 31, 1988.
Wu said both the countries are also in consultations to work on a new Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the defence ministries.
The two sides have already held 21 rounds of talks under the framework of SR dialogue which was set up to find an early solution to the border dispute.
Relations between India and Pakistan, which appeared to be on course towards normalisation after return of civilian rule in Islamabad almost touched a nadir at the year end in the aftermath of Pakistani militants carrying out a carnage in Mumbai.
