Swaraj, Aziz meet informally Indian foreign minister says it was ‘courtesy call’
PM spokesperson says Pakistan resumed talks with India in good faith but India unilaterally snapped process earlier
NEW DELHI/ISLAMABAD:
Top foreign policy wizards from Pakistan and India met informally in Kathmandu, Nepal, on Tuesday amid conflicting reports about the possibility of a meeting between the prime ministers of the two countries on the margins of the summit of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).
The meeting between Indian Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj and Sartaj Aziz, the Pakistani prime minister’s adviser on national security and foreign policy, lasted seven or 10 minutes. “I met him [Aziz] out of courtesy. It is a common courtesy that when representatives of different countries meet at an international forum, they greet each other,” Swaraj said about her interaction with Aziz on the sidelines of the Saarc foreign ministers’ meeting.
Prime Ministers Nawaz Sharif and Narendra Modi will be coming face to face for the first time after May, when the Pakistani premier attended Modi’s swearing-in ceremony in New Delhi. There are reports that the two leaders might have an informal meeting, but there is no official confirmation from either side. Asked about the possibility of a meeting, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, said on Monday evening: “Wait till tomorrow”.
The Pakistani prime minister’s spokesman said Nawaz Sharif would consider the move if his Indian counterpart requested a meeting. “Neither India nor Pakistan has so far requested for a meeting between the two premiers,” Dr Musadik Malik told journalists in Islamabad.
“Pakistan had resumed talks with India in good faith, but India unilaterally snapped the process,” he said referring to the cancellation of scheduled talks between the foreign secretaries of the two countries by New Delhi following the Pakistani envoy’s meeting with Kashmiri leaders in August.
Dr Malik called upon India to come back to the negotiating table as Pakistan wanted to have good friendly relations with all its neighbours. Political observers in India, too, believe their country should climb down from its high horse and reopen the dialogue.
“India is a big country. It should not make an issue of not wanting to talk,” said former secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs, KC Singh. Editor of India’s Sunday Guardian newspaper, M Nalapat said: “In a multilateral forum, if you have bilateral meetings with everyone, and exclude one nation, it sends a very bad message”.
However, Meem Afzal of the opposition Congress party didn’t agree. “This is a kind of zigzag policy. First you invite Pakistan to your swearing-in, then snap talks… what sort of policy is this? What has Pakistan done to merit being invited for talks? We believe India and Pakistan should have friendly relations. And you need two hands to clap. But this government should tell us what has changed to go into talks with Pakistan,” he said.
The Indian press is divided about a possible meeting. While The Indian Express said confidently that the leaders could meet at the retreat, the Times of India was equally pessimistic about the prospects of a meeting, deriving largely from a statement made by Sartaj Aziz that a meeting was not on the agenda.
The Indian government is mindful of the fact that November 26 is the anniversary of the 2008 Mumbai attacks launched by – among others – Ajmal Kasab. New Delhi has been asking Islamabad to act on the trial of those who were charged with plotting the attack.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 26th, 2014.
Top foreign policy wizards from Pakistan and India met informally in Kathmandu, Nepal, on Tuesday amid conflicting reports about the possibility of a meeting between the prime ministers of the two countries on the margins of the summit of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).
The meeting between Indian Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj and Sartaj Aziz, the Pakistani prime minister’s adviser on national security and foreign policy, lasted seven or 10 minutes. “I met him [Aziz] out of courtesy. It is a common courtesy that when representatives of different countries meet at an international forum, they greet each other,” Swaraj said about her interaction with Aziz on the sidelines of the Saarc foreign ministers’ meeting.
Prime Ministers Nawaz Sharif and Narendra Modi will be coming face to face for the first time after May, when the Pakistani premier attended Modi’s swearing-in ceremony in New Delhi. There are reports that the two leaders might have an informal meeting, but there is no official confirmation from either side. Asked about the possibility of a meeting, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, said on Monday evening: “Wait till tomorrow”.
The Pakistani prime minister’s spokesman said Nawaz Sharif would consider the move if his Indian counterpart requested a meeting. “Neither India nor Pakistan has so far requested for a meeting between the two premiers,” Dr Musadik Malik told journalists in Islamabad.
“Pakistan had resumed talks with India in good faith, but India unilaterally snapped the process,” he said referring to the cancellation of scheduled talks between the foreign secretaries of the two countries by New Delhi following the Pakistani envoy’s meeting with Kashmiri leaders in August.
Dr Malik called upon India to come back to the negotiating table as Pakistan wanted to have good friendly relations with all its neighbours. Political observers in India, too, believe their country should climb down from its high horse and reopen the dialogue.
“India is a big country. It should not make an issue of not wanting to talk,” said former secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs, KC Singh. Editor of India’s Sunday Guardian newspaper, M Nalapat said: “In a multilateral forum, if you have bilateral meetings with everyone, and exclude one nation, it sends a very bad message”.
However, Meem Afzal of the opposition Congress party didn’t agree. “This is a kind of zigzag policy. First you invite Pakistan to your swearing-in, then snap talks… what sort of policy is this? What has Pakistan done to merit being invited for talks? We believe India and Pakistan should have friendly relations. And you need two hands to clap. But this government should tell us what has changed to go into talks with Pakistan,” he said.
The Indian press is divided about a possible meeting. While The Indian Express said confidently that the leaders could meet at the retreat, the Times of India was equally pessimistic about the prospects of a meeting, deriving largely from a statement made by Sartaj Aziz that a meeting was not on the agenda.
The Indian government is mindful of the fact that November 26 is the anniversary of the 2008 Mumbai attacks launched by – among others – Ajmal Kasab. New Delhi has been asking Islamabad to act on the trial of those who were charged with plotting the attack.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 26th, 2014.