news details |
|
|
| Success of ensuing bilateral talks banks on Pak's flexibility | | | Pakistan's charge that India has hardened its stand on the Siachen issue does not seem to be tenable because it was Pakistani forces that created the problem when troops occupied the unmanned heights in Siachen area. Since the other side was responsible for triggering the conflict on the mountain glacier it cannot expect India to accept dictation from Islama-bad as far as the resolution of the dispute was concerned. When about 139 Pakistani soldiers were killed when their posts were hit by an avalanche a month ago the Army Chief, Gen.Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, had pleaded for demilitarisation of the mountain glacier after bilateral agreement. In fact besides Gen. Kayani other Pakistani leaders were in favour of settling the dispute which had caused heavy human loss and economic bleed on both the sides.Past events have clearly revealed that Pakistan has been trying to raise one hurdle or the other whenever the two sides resume the dialogue process for resolving various issues. And as far as the Siachen dispute is concerned Gen.Kayanai has started blaming India for having toughned its stand on the issue.
He has said that India had hardened its position on the Siachen issue as compared to the 1989 stance it had adopted, saying that it "takes two hands to clap". He said that "India had earlier been demanding the approval of the boundary but now it had begun asking for the re-determination of positions. "It takes two hands to clap," he said. During an earlier visit to the site of the avalanche at Gyari on April 18, Kayani had called for all issues between India and Pakistan to be resolved to ensure "peaceful co-existence" which would allow the two sides to focus on development and the welfare of the people. He had also said at the time that Pakistan hoped that the Siachen issue is "resolved so that both the countries don't have to pay the cost". Pakistani officials have for long contended that the two countries came close to an agreement on Siachen in 1989 during a meeting between then Prime Ministers Rajiv Gandhi and Benazir Bhutto.In recent days, senior Pakistani officials have called for the implementation of that "agreement".
Now that the stage is being set for a series of bilateral talks on various issues,including terrorism and Sir Creek, it is hoped that Islamabad stopped raising frivolous issues which could rupture the proces of dialogue.
If Gen.Kayani says that "it takes two hands to clap" he should know it that for doing so the two sides should be prepared for give and take and any signs of inflexibility on either side could affect the pace and progress of the process of dialogue. During the last over two years whenever India evinced interest in resolving various bilateral problems, including the Sir Creek, Siachen, water and terrorism, Pakistan would usually demanded that these talks be made Kashmir centric. The result was that there has been no progress in talks held on issues like Siachen, Sir Creek and terrorism. W hen the t wo sides have shown interest in settling the Siachen issue Pakistan has started telling India to implement the agreement that had been reached between the then Prime Ministers, Rajiv Gandhi and Benazir Bhutto,in 1989.Islamabad needs to realise that since 1989 much water has flowed down the rivers in India and Pakistan and the situation in the Indian subcontinent is not the same it was in 1989. The export of terror to India, particularly to Jammu and Kashmir, from the soil of Pakistan had given rise to new political compulsions and it is time for Pakistan to show flexibility in the upcoming talks if it reallty wants peace to be restored to the region. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
STOCK UPDATE |
|
|
 |
| BSE
Sensex |
 |
| NSE
Nifty |
|
|
| |
CRICKET UPDATE |
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
