'Summit after Vajpayee recovers'

By B. Muralidhar Reddy

ISLAMABAD, JUNE 12. Pakistan today announced that the summit meeting between the Chief Executive, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, and the Prime Minister, Mr. Atal Behari Vajpayee, would take place ``shortly'' after Mr. Vajpayee recovers from his knee-surgery.

At a news conference here, the Foreign Office spokesman said the dates for the meeting were being discussed through diplomatic channels. Implied was the suggestion that it was for India to suggest a suitable date for the summit and the earlier the better. Gen. Musharraf has said he is ready to visit New Delhi any time after June 20.

There is a strong view among a section of the opinion makers here that too much ``delay'' between the invitation extended by Mr. Vajpayee and the actual meeting could only complicate matters and help the hardliners create hurdles in the path of a meaningful dialogue. To a question on the agenda for the summit, the spokesman said Kashmir would be the main subject, but at the same time he hastened to add that Pakistan would approach the subject with an ``open mind to find a just solution''.

Asked to elaborate what he meant by a ``just'' solution, the spokesman said the Kashmir issue related to the Kashmiris' right to self-determination and that the United Nations had affirmed that right. ``The just solution has to be based on principles. We wish to emphasise that any resolution of the Kashmir issue would have to be according to the wishes of the people of Kashmir.''

On the decision of the All-Party Hurriyat Conference to ``suspend'' its political agitation against ``state terrorism'' until after the summit, he merely said, ``we have seen the report and the subsequent denial. I have nothing more to add.''

To another question the spokesman said Pakistan had appealed to India to create a ``positive environment'' for the coming summit and the statement it had issued on Sunday was in the context of the incident at Charar-e-Sharief. Pakistan had accused Indian forces of having stepped up ``repression'' against people of Kashmir. ``We believe the source of violence in Kashmir is oppression by the Indian forces. This fact is reflected in the reports of our media.''

Advance team coming?

UNI reports from New Delhi:

A high-level official delegation from Pakistan is expected to come here for discussions in advance of Gen. Musharraf's proposed historic visit.

``In the run-up to the visit, there would be an advance team discussing different aspects of the visit,'' a spokesman of the External Affairs Ministry said.

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