Kashmir inclusion brought NSAs back to talks table
BANGKOK MEET Modi, Sharif’s Paris encounter result of back channel parleys
NEW DELHI: When Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif met briefly in Paris on November 30, they already knew their national security advisers would meet soon and discuss not just terrorism, but Kashmir as well.
The climate change moment in the India-Pakistan relationship was a result of back-channel diplomacy that took place in Delhi, well before Modi flew to the French capital, highly placed sources told HT.
The two-minute interaction between Modi and Sharif in Paris was no chance meeting, but had been set up after a quiet, under the radar meeting in Delhi between national security adviser AK Doval and Pakistan high commissioner Abdul Basit.
India conveyed its willingness to take the engagement process further and suggested a meeting between the NSAs of the two countries at a third location. The meeting between Doval and his counterpart Lt Gen (retd) Naseer Janjua finally took place in Bangkok on December 6 but the venue was not the main issue.
“We told India we were willing for a meeting between the NSAs on the condition that the talks include not just the issue of terrorism, but also Jammu and Kashmir,’’ a senior Pakistani official told HT on the condition of anonymity.
CONTINUED ON P5 NEW DELHI: Opposition parties on Monday sought a clarification from the the Prime Minister in Parliament on the national security adviser-level talks between India and Pakistan, accusing the government of making a fundamental departure from its stated position with respect to the neighbouring country.
Congress leader Anand Sharma said the fact that foreign secretaries >>P4