ISLAMABAD, 7 April 2007 — Top Indian and Pakistani defense officials held talks here yesterday on demilitarizing the Siachen glacier in disputed Kashmir where freezing temperatures have claimed more lives than actual combat.
The talks centered on the disclosure of Pakistani military positions in the 6,300-meter Siachen glacier, which India says it requires before demilitarization of the world’s highest battlefield can begin.
According to an official source Pakistan advanced the idea of demilitarization of the glacier and called for early troop withdrawal, whereas the Indian delegation maintained that Pakistan should recognize the post-1984 position.
A nine-member Indian delegation led by Defense Secretary Shekhar Dutt discussed the issue with the newly-appointed Pakistani Defense Secretary Kamran Rasool.
A Defense Ministry statement here said the first day’s talks were “cordial and friendly.” “Both sides presented their respective point of view on the subject and stressed the need for moving ahead,” it added.
“The two sides are trying to arrive at some consensus on indicating present positions held by troops of each (side) on the glacier before withdrawal of forces,” a senior Pakistani Foreign Ministry official told AFP on condition of anonymity. “If an agreement is reached in the meeting it will be formally announced when leaders of Pakistan and India (President Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh) meet sometime later this year.” The talks are part of the peace process launched in January 2004 by the two countries.
India says Pakistan sent its troops to Siachen in 1984 whereas Pakistan maintains that Indian troops captured various posts which were considered demilitarized zone by the two armies.
Indian Premier Manmohan on Thursday called a meeting of his security Cabinet to chalk out a framework for the Siachen talks. He was later quoted as saying he was “hopeful” of a positive outcome.
Pakistani analyst and retired army general Talat Masood said the statements from both sides in the run-up to the talks were “fairly optimistic.” “It seems there is a possibility the Siachen issue could be settled now or the signing could be when the Indian prime minister visits Pakistan,” he told AFP. “There is some sense of strategic value of the glacier because Siachen borders China and India. But its real value is political and psychological for both as it lies in disputed Kashmir.”
