Jan 11 , 2016
News
Some Indian ‘officials’ believe no chance of Friday talks with Pakistan
Indian NSA adviser says India to talk to Pakistan only after it acts on Pathankot
INPNEW DELHI – Indian National Security Adviser Ajit Doval said on Monday that the foreign secretary-level talks between Pakistan and India won't happen if Pakistan does not act against the Pathankot attack masterminds.
In an interview with NDTV, Doval said that India will talk only if Pakistan takes action. The secretary-level talks between the two countries were scheduled for January 15. Last week – following the Pathankot attack – India had categorically said that the ball was in Pakistan's court on the continuation of the resumed bilateral talks following Prime Minister Narendra Modi's unscheduled stopover on December 25 at Lahore to meet his counterpart, Nawaz Sharif.
“The ball is in Pakistan's court. The immediate issue is Pakistan's response to the Pathankot attack and actionable intelligence provided to it,” Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Vikas Swarup had said. “Cross-border terrorism is again in focus after the terrorist attack on the Pathankot air force base,” he had said, adding that India was not derailing the dialogue.
Ajit Doval has denied that he told Dainik Bhaskar, a newspaper, that talks between the foreign secretaries of Pakistan and India expected this week are cancelled. Pakistan had announced that the talks would be held on January 15 in Islamabad; India had not confirmed the dates, but has officially not called off the talks yet.
Sources in the Indian capital say that the dialogue is unlikely to go ahead unless Pakistan delivers on a commitment made over the phone by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi offering cooperation for the investigation.
Last week, the Foreign Ministry had said that Pakistan must deliver “prompt and decisive action” on the evidence provided by India of the terror attack on January 2 at the air force base in Pathankot.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk