New Delhi: In a sudden, but significant development in the stalled India-Pakistan dialogue, the national security advisers of both countries, accompanied by the foreign secretaries, met quietly for over four hours in Bangkok on Sunday, and discussed terrorism, Jammu & Kashmir and other matters of bilateral interest, and agreed to take forward the “constructive” engagement.
India’s NSA Ajit Doval and Pakistan’s Nasir Janjua, along with foreign secretaries S. Jaishankar and Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry, held their marathon meeting just six days after Prime Ministers Narendra Modi and Nawaz Sharif held a brief meeting in Paris, obviously with a view to revive the stalled dialogue process.
A joint statement issued after the meeting said: “Pursuant to the meeting of the PMs of India and Pakistan in Paris, the NSAs, met in Bangkok today (Sunday). Discussions were held in a candid, cordial and constructive atmosphere. They were guided by the vision of the two leaders for a peaceful, stable and prosperous South Asia.”
“The discussions covered peace and security, terrorism, J&K, and other issues, including tranquility along the LoC. It was agreed to carry forward the constructive engagement,” the statement added. The choice of a neutral venue for the meeting may have been prompted by a desire to avoid a repeat of events that led to cancellation of a visit by Pakistan’s then NSA Sartaj Aziz.
