Agreement on Foreign Secys. meeting a positive sign

By B. Muralidhar Reddy

ISLAMABAD, AUG. 6. The simultaneous announcements from Islamabad and New Delhi about the ``agreement'' on the meeting between the two Foreign Secretaries on the sidelines of the special session of the SAARC Standing Committee in Colombo on August 9 and 10 is an indication of the desire on the part of the two countries to pick up the threads after the Agra summit.

There was some anxiety, particularly among those who pushing both the countries to carry forward the Agra process, in the wake of the rhetoric and hardening of postures immediately after the summit.

More than the rhetoric, serious incidents of violence in Jammu and Kashmir in the last few days was a matter of concern. Though Pakistan and Pakistan-based militant outfits condemned the incidents involving the killing of innocent civilians, doubts persist in New Delhi about the identity of the perpetrators of the criminal acts.

Fortunately, neither New Delhi nor Islamabad has allowed the acrimony generated in the post-summit phase to come in the way of renewed contact at the first available opportunity. And what better opportunity than the Standing Committee meeting of the SAARC.

The Foreign Secretaries' meeting would be particularly useful in view of a possible meeting between the Prime Minister, Mr. Atal Behari Vajpayee, and the Pakistan President, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, in New York next month.

The proposed meeting between the two Foreign Secretaries could be expected to be a little more than a ``hello, hai'' exchange. The Indian High Commissioner in Pakistan, Mr. Vijay K. Nambiar, is likely to be in Colombo in the next two days obviously to help the Foreign Secretary, Ms. Chokila Iyer, in the dialogue with her Pakistani counterpart.

Sources on the Indian side were, however, at pains to emphasise that no meaning should be read into Mr. Nambiar's presence in Colombo.

``He would be there to help the Foreign Secretary who is relatively new to the job. The problem is that the Joint Secretary in-charge of the IPA (Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan desk) in the External Affairs Ministry has just taken over. There is no other reason for his presence in Colombo,'' a senior diplomat said.

In a related development the leading Pakistani Urdu daily, Jang, claimed that India and Pakistan had assured the United States they would soon hold talks on nuclear issues.

The assurance was given during the U.S. Assistant Secretary of State, Ms. Christina Rocca's visit to New Delhi and Islamabad.

The report quoting the Far Eastern Economic Review said despite all international pressures, both the countries were attempting to increase the number of nuclear weapons.

This had been a matter of concern for the U.S. but adopting a flexible stand, it urged both the countries to maintain their nuclear position before May, 1998. The Bush administration had so far not evolved any clear strategy in the context of nuclear issues but there were indications the U.S. had given up the demand of the two countries signing the CTBT.

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Section  : International
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