June 10, 2003	Tuesday	Rabi-us-Sani 9, 1424

Please Visit our Sponsor (Ads open in separate window)

ISLAMABAD, June 9: Pakistan on Monday urged India to “be more intense, more purposeful and in a timeframe” in advancing towards proposed peace talks between the two countries.

The new foreign office spokesman, Masood Khan, recalled at the weekly FO briefing the welcoming response by Pakistan’s top leadership to the April announcement by the Indian premier, and indicated that it had not been reciprocated in equal measure.

Asked whether Islamabad was satisfied with India’s attitude to talks on normalization and peace between the two sides, Mr Masood Khan said: “It is not a matter of satisfaction. We do hope that the engagement between Pakistan and India would be more intense, more purposeful and in a time-frame”. Referring to Indian leaders’ reported statements, he said Pakistan had been more constructive, more positive and more forward-looking.

“Unfortunately we haven’t seen the same tone from the Indian leadership,” the spokesman complained. “We hope that would help us to increase the momentum which is at the embryonic stage (so that) we should carry it forward”.

In somewhat of a contrast to the recent tenor of official declarations about normalization and peace talks between the two countries, Mr Masood Khan said: “India should put its act together, they should speak in one voice. We hear about internal dissensions about normalization with Pakistan. That is one worrying aspect”. He hoped Mr Vajpayee’s initiative would be sustained.

The spokesman expected good results from the proposed visits later this month by President Pervez Musharraf to the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany and France, and said the objective of these visits was consolidation of multi-dimensional relations as well as consolidating the political dimension and also building on bilateral economic relations.

Mr Masood Khan said Washington had recognized Pakistan’s “crucial role” as a partner of the western coalition in the international war on terrorism. The dates and schedule of President Musharraf’s visits to the three other countries had not yet been finalized, the spokesman said, and added it was hoped that the president would leave on his proposed tour around June 15-17.

The spokesman also pointed out that Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov was due here on June 15 for a meeting with the foreign minister on an agenda which besides bilateral relations, would include exchange of views on the situation in the region. Though some agreements between Pakistan and Russia were on the anvil, none was scheduled to be signed during Mr Ivanov’s one-day stay.

The spokesman said Pakistan had taken serious note of allegations about Islamabad’s involvement in a violent armed clash inside Afghanistan in Boldok and had delivered a demarche to the Afghan ambassador here. Kabul had stated that about 18 persons were killed in the clash with Afghan and US peacekeeping forces recently, and dumped the bodies of eight fighters across the border in Pakistan, declaring they were Pakistanis. Pakistan denied the allegation, Mr Masood Khan said.

The spokesman reiterated Pakistan’s stand not to accept the LoC as the permanent border. He also reaffirmed that Pakistan would insist on a strategic balance between Islamabad and New Delhi, reminding reporters that the nuclear test explosions in 1998 had changed the realities about the former concept of a denuclearized South Asia zone.