Pakistan

India, Pakistan discuss demilitarization of Siachen

Both sides may release a joint statement regarding the dispute on Tuesday.

Ppi May 30, 2011

NEW DEHLI: India and Pakistan Monday discussed demilitarization of Siachen Glacier, the world's highest militarised zone, in a "constructive framework", picking up threads of the issue after a gap of three years, Press Trust of India PTI news agency reported.

The issue was discussed at 12th round of two-day Defence Secretary level talks between two sides. "The talks were held in a constructive framework. Both sides apprised each other of their perception about Siachen issue and also discussed the surrounding issues," Indian Defence Ministry officials said. Defence Secretary Pradeep Kumar led the Indian delegation with his Pakistani counterpart Lt General (Retd) Syed Ather Ali.

The Pakistani Defence Secretary met Indian Defence Minister A K Antony in the afternoon for over 20 minutes, PTI said.

The decision to resume talks between the two countries was taken last year during a meeting between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Pakistani counterpart Yusuf Raza Gilani in Thimpu, Bhutan when they decided to take forward the dialogue process.

Pakistan delegation has two civilian officials and four military officers. The Indian side includes Special Secretary R K Mathur, Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) Lt General A M Verma and Surveyor General S Subha Rao.

The two sides may come up with a joint statement tomorrow after the talks on Tuesday, Indian officials said.

Siachen, with an area of over 2500 sq km, the world's highest militarised zone, has been a long pending issue between India and Pakistan over differences on the location of 110-km long Actual Ground Position Line (AGPL) which passes through Soltoro Ridge and Siachen Glacier.

COMMENTS (8)

Khurram | 12 years ago | Reply @Tahir; " we will conquer india soon insallah". I would never have known, had I not read the above lines that my country is capable of conquering India soon. Brother Tahir I am not amused I hope you are not serious, it is just a joke. We are mired in the ugliest mess and the very survival of our country is at stake. I really do not understand how can you afford to say such Quixotic things?

Truth_Prevails | 12 years ago | Reply @Ashok: You are a funny guy. Pakistan's inability to abide by treaties? Man you are totally out of this world. 1) UN Security Resolution on Kashmir 2) Sindh Taas Treaty 3) Occupation of Siachen by Indains (it was never militarized Before 1980s)... My friend, its India to be blamed for all this. For all the issues, root causes can easily be traced back to India by even a kid. Siachen should be demilitarized and Indians should go back to their positions prior to 1980s.