Talks on the withdrawal of troops from the Siachen glacier have failed, jeopardising Manmohan Singh’s proposed visit to Islamabad.
NEW DELHI: Talks between India and Pakistan on the withdrawal of troops from the Siachen glacier have failed, jeopardising Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s proposed visit to Islamabad. Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee confirmed that the discussions ended in a deadlock over the authentication of positions held by the two sides on the glacier.
On Wednesday, India and Pakistan attempted to downplay the failure of negotiations by emphasising the success of a ceasefire which has remained in place since 2003.
“Pakistan has not agreed to the proposal for authentication of positions for quite some time, and the differences remain in this area,’’ Pranab Mukherjee told reporters in the capital. Trying to impart a positive spin on the developments, the minister said, “Perhaps there can be upward movement in another round of talks.”
It is now up to the leaders on both sides to break the stalemate. “Nothing more can be done at the bureaucratic level. It will need political will on both sides to resolve the dispute,” an official, who did not wish to be identified, said.
On Thursday the two sides will meet to discuss Sir Creek. If the proceedings are satisfactory, the Prime Minister can still make it to Islamabad this summer. Although neither Siachen nor Sir Creek is officially linked to Manmohan Singh’s visit, a summit with nothing to show for it is politically untenable.
As for Siachen, with memories of Kargil still fresh, the Indian army insists on the proper authentication of positions held by the two countries. New Delhi says it is not possible to risk disengagement without authentication.
It assumes greater significance in light of the fact that Indian troops are in better positions than their Pakistani counterparts. “The cost of maintaining soldiers at these heights is enormous, but we can afford to do so. We are better off now than we were 20 years ago and can hold on longer till our security concerns are addressed,’’ said an official.
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