It will have three officials from both the sides and will be coordinated by the Foreign Offices of both the countries.
Updated at midnight
NEW DELHI: The foreign secretary-level talks between India and Pakistan ended on a high note on Wednesday with each side showing remarkable understanding for the other’s concerns.
The joint anti-terror mechanism, pivotal for enabling the government to go ahead with the talks, has been set up. This will give both countries a forum to put forward evidence and allegations against each other, instead of going public. On the Indian side, the three-member team will be headed by Additional Secretary KC Singh.
Foreign Secretary Shiv Shankar Menon said India has shared evidence for follow-up action by Pakistan in several cases in which investigators have found links with outfits operating from across the Line of Control.
“We have shared information with Pakistan on some of the cases in which investigations have been completed and chargesheets filed,” he said. But no information was shared on the Mumbai blasts.
“We have discussed the blasts, but we cannot provide the evidence before the chargesheet is filed,” Menon said. “We cannot risk contempt of court.”
Islamabad was told that it should act to stop banned organisations like the Lashkar-e-Tayiba from undertaking terrorist activities in India.
Pakistan Foreign Secretary Riaz Mohammed Khan confirmed that evidence had been shared and the Mumbai blasts were kept out. Conveying Pakistan’s irritation at New Delhi jumping to conclusions, he said, “After the Mumbai blasts… there was finger-pointing about our involvement. We rejected it. There is an acknowledged method of dealing with such things through sharing of specific evidence. Instead, India aborted the composite dialogue.”
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