The Hindu : Front Page : India ‘realistic’ in agreeing to talk

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Feb 19, 2010
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

Front Page

Front Page

India ‘realistic’ in agreeing to talk

Special Correspondent

‘Nuanced approach to dialogue being adopted’

New Delhi: The coming meeting between the Foreign Secretaries of India and Pakistan is aimed at building a climate of trust for future talks between the neighbours, but much will depend on what Islamabad actually does, according to official sources.

India was being “realistic” in going ahead with the meeting, as beyond a point, putting off talks was likely to yield diminishing returns, the sources said on Thursday. “However, this [meeting] is not aimed at resolving the outstanding issues. We are fully conscious of the complexities involved in the process and are, therefore, adopting a nuanced approach to the dialogue.”

The sources reiterated that terrorism directed at India remained “our core concern” and the terror strike in Pune put this concern in sharper focus. New Delhi was, in fact, clear that the talks did not signal the resumption of the composite dialogue that was put on hold after the November 26, 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.

“The Indian focus during the talks would be on terror. If Pakistan has other concerns, we are willing to address them. However, the future course of the dialogue would depend on how they respond to our concerns,” the sources said.

There were legitimate reasons, including a sharp domestic reaction, for suspending the talks in the aftermath of the Mumbai attacks. While this strategy had paid good dividends, today the situation had reached a stage where “not talking” could become counter-productive, more so given Pakistan’s own vulnerability in dealing with terrorism.

The situation in Pakistan and Afghanistan was very different from what it was a year ago, the sources said. The “core establishment,” led by the military, had strengthened itself vis-À-vis the civilian government and wanted tension on the India-Pakistan border.

“The establishment wants to rally the whole of Pakistan behind it and nothing works like a bombing… So if we were to have an instinctive reaction, this would be playing into their hands,” the sources said.

Provocative statements

Pointing to the volley of provocative statements from across the border, among them the February 5 warning of Abdur Rehman Makki that Pune could be a future target, the sources stressed the importance of dialogue in cooling the temper and restoring normality.

“We need to be sensible in the way we approach each other as we are both victims of terror. If anything, we need CBMs (confidence building measures) on terror,” the government sources said.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Front Page