In a significant development, India and Pakistan on Thursday agreed to open more channels of communication for resolving all issues of utmost importance between the two sides, increase bilateral engagements and maintain peace along the international border.
The development comes as India and Pakistan began Director General-level talks this morning during which the top military commanders from both sides agreed not to allow escalation of tensions along the Line of Control (LoC).
Responding to India’s appeal for peace, the Pakistan Army pledged that its troops will observe ceasefire strictly and exercise restraint in the days to come.
On Wednesday evening, a 15-member delegation of the Pakistan Rangers arrived in New Delhi for the talks. The team is led by Major General Umar Farooq Burki, Director General of the Pakistan Rangers (Punjab).
From the Indian side, the delegation for the talks is led by Border Security Force (BSF) Director General DK Pathak and 22 other officers.
The talks reportedly began around 10.00 am and will continue till September 12.
The main agenda of the talks is ceasefire violations. Just on Wednesday, at least two BSF personnel were wounded in firing in Nowgam sector of Jammu and Kashmir.
The Pakistani Army also fired at Indian positions along the LoC in Poonch district.
The talks, one of the measures agreed upon during a meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif, gain special significance after the National Security Adviser-level talks could not take place due to Pakistan’s insistence on discussing Kashmir.
The Pakistan Rangers delegation entered India via Attari, and was welcomed by senior BSF officers including DG Pathak. There, they boarded a special aircraft to Delhi, where the talks are taking place.
The Indian delegation to talks also includes officials from the Home Ministry, the Narcotics Control Bureau and the Survey of India.
“During the conference, discussions will be held on important issues like cross-border firing, infiltration and smuggling etc. The talks will also endeavour to focus on positive issues like different levels of communication, more simultaneous coordinated patrolling and other confidence building measures,” a BSF official said.
Asked if the talks will reduce tension between the two countries, Pathak said, “That is the objective for talks.”
With some 100 ceasefire violations along the India-Pakistan border since the Ufa talks, the issue is likely to dominate the agenda from the Indian side, sources said.
Till June this year, there have been 199 ceasefire violations by Pakistan.
Official figures reveal that around 430 ceasefire violations occurred on the International Border while 153 violations were reported on the LoC in 2014. In 2013, it was 347.
