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Pakistan optimistic about Siachen agreement

By K J M Varma in Islamabad
May 15, 2006 19:58 IST
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Pakistan said on Monday that it expects progress on the Siachen issue with India during defence secretary-level talks next week.

"Our expectations remain that we will be able to move forward. We would rather focus on the forthcoming talks than what is being said in India," Pakistan's Foreign Office spokesperson Tasnim Aslam told reporters.

She was reacting to Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee's statement in Parliament on May 11, where he said there were no plans at present to pull out troops from Siachen glacier. "I would not comment on statements emanating from India. There is an internal debate," she said. "What we expect from peace talks is progress. I would not like to prejudge the outcome."

The defence secretaries of India and Pakistan are scheduled to meet in New Delhi on May 23 and 24 to discuss solutions for Siachen and Sir Creek as part of third round of the Composite Dialogue process.

Aslam also said Pakistan has no expectations from the round table conference being planned by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in Srinagar to discuss the Kashmir issue with local groups and political parties.

"We have to see what the expectations of Kashmiris are, whether they feel it is serving any purpose. As for us, we have no expectations," she said.

On Baglihar dam, she said the matter is with the neutral expert and the two sides are expected to meet him by the end of this month or early next month.

Complete coverage: Indo-Pak peace process

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K J M Varma in Islamabad
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