ISLAMABAD, Oct 20: The Foreign Office on Wednesday announced a schedule for meetings with India beginning next month to discuss different issues, including narcotics control, resumption of the Munnabao-Khokhrapar railway link, Srinagar-Muzzafarabad bus service and confidence-building measures relating to nuclear and conventional arms.

At his weekly press briefing, spokesman Masood Ahmad Khan said the foreign secretaries of the two countries would meet some time in the later half of December this year to wrap up the second round of negotiations which would be held in November and December.

The foreign secretaries had indicated in a joint statement issued at the end of their talks on Sept 8 that they might resume talks on the two items assigned to them, the Jammu and Kashmir dispute and peace and security, when they met later this year, the spokesman said in reply to a question.

The issue of Siachen has been under discussions at the level of military experts and further talks in this connection would be held separately by the experts at a mutually agreed date and venue and is, therefore, not included in the present schedule of eight meetings.

According to the schedule of meetings agreed upon in September, narcotics control authorities of Pakistan and India will hold a two-day meeting in New Delhi from Nov 29 and the agenda includes finalization of a memorandum of understanding.

A meeting between the railway authorities on the Munnabao-Khokhrapar rail link is scheduled for Dec 2-3 in Islamabad.

Talks between the Indian coast guards and the Pakistan Maritime Security Agency will be held on Dec 3-4 in New Delhi to discuss an MoU for establishing communication links between the two countries.

A meeting on issues relating to commencement of a bus service between Srinagar and Muzzafarabad will be held on Dec 7-8 in New Delhi.

Expert-level talks on trade-related issues will be held on Dec 9-10 in New Delhi.

Expert-level talks on nuclear confidence-building measures will be held in Islamabad on Dec 14-15 that would include discussion on a draft agreement on advance notification of missile tests.

An expert-level meeting on conventional CBMs will be held on Dec 15-16 in Islamabad.

A meeting on the Joint Survey of the Boundary Pillars on the Horizontal Segment in the Sir Creek Area will be held on Dec 14-15 in Karachi.

Agencies add: The spokesman said that after trying for months to fix a date for Kashmir bus talks, the two countries had agreed on a date for expert-level talks.

"We tried to schedule the meeting quite a few times but we did not succeed because of minor differences, or difference in interpretation," he added.

"Now we have agreed on a date and when the experts meet they will discuss each and every issue; documentation, political aspects, logistic aspects, technical aspects, the infrastructure and so on."

Mr Khan said that Pakistan had proposed that foreign secretaries should meet in the third or fourth week of December, after the expert-level talks, "so that all this cycle of negotiations can be wrapped up".

He said the December meeting between the foreign secretaries of the two countries to discuss peace and security and the issue of Jammu and Kashmir had already been agreed. The dates and venue of the meeting are yet to be finalized.

"The government of Pakistan and India have agreed to the schedule of meetings" on eight agenda items for the last quarter of the year, Mr Khan said. Of the eight meetings agreed on Wednesday, each country will host four meetings.

The spokesman rebutted a news report published in the Hindustan Times on Kashmir, claiming that Pakistan had agreed to not changing its present geography.

On a news report about a proposed deal between the United States and India on the purchase of the 'Patriot' anti-ballistic missile, he said the report was yet to be verified.

However, the spokesman said, since Pakistan and India were holding talks on issues including conventional and nuclear CBMs, it was important to demonstrate restraint and work towards strategic stability in South Asia.

About the level of trust between Pakistan and India in the backdrop of the ongoing composite dialogue process, the spokesman said that the two countries had difficulties in the past.

However, he said, now both the countries had initiated a dialogue process and there was a ceasefire on the Line of Control (LoC) since Nov 25, 2003.

Mr Khan said there was a need to be mindful of the complexity of issues between the two countries.

About the proposal of reduction in forces in held Kashmir, the spokesman said it could be very helpful.

In reply to a question, he agreed that Pakistan was paying a heavy price for its role in the fight against terrorism. However, he reaffirmed Pakistan's resolve to fight terrorism in all its forms and manifestation. Pakistan was fighting the war on terror in line with its own national interests, he added.

NEW DELHI: Senior officials of India and Pakistan will resume their second round of the composite dialogue next month when Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz is also expected to pay his first visit here, Jawed Naqvi adds.