Pak hopes 'ice will melt' on Siachen

New Delhi, May 22 (UNI) Pakistan today hoped that the warmth of growing ties with India would melt the snows of conflict on Siachen.

The two countries will hold two-day talks here tomorrow and on May 24 on a proposal to withdraw troops from Siachen glacier in Jammu and Kashmir. This will be followed by discussions on May 25-26 on the demarcation of Sir Creek, a strip of marshland on the western border between the two countries.

The discussions, over-shadowed by the fidayeen attack on a Congress rally at Srinagar yesterday in which eight people were killed and about 30 injured, form part of the Third Round of the Composite Dialogue Process (CDP) between the two countries.

Pakistan Defence Secretary Lt Gen (Retd) Tariq Ghazi, who will lead his nine-member delegation at the two-day talks on de-militarisation of Siachen glacier beginning here from tomorrow, told reporters at the airport on his arrival that he had come with a positive frame of mind and would discuss all issues in that spirit.

Defence Secretary Shekhar Dutt, who will lead the Indian side at the talks, also expressed the hope of positive discussions.

Asked about Islamabad's reaction to India's proposal for recognition of the Actual Ground Position Line (AGPL), the Pakistan delegation leader said they had come for the discussions with an open mind and whatever issues came up at the talks, would be discussed with a positive frame of mind.

He said both countries wanted to move forward and were progressing on the path of peace and prosperity. Progress was being made in bilateral relations but much more needed to be done, he added.

The Siachen talks will be followed by discussions on demarcation of Sir Creek on May 25-26. The Indian side will be led by Major General M Gopal Rao while the Pakistani delegation will be headed by Mr Ahsan-ul-Haq.

The Cabinet Committee on Security has already approved the framework of India-Pakistan talks on Siachen and Sir Creek issues.

The two countries will also hold Home Secretary-level talks on Terrorism and Drug-Trafficking in Islamabad on May 30-31.

This will be followed by discussions here between Culture Secretaries on Promotion of Friendly Exchanges on June 1-2.

Foreign Secretaries' and Foreign Ministers'-level review meetings will be held in New Delhi on July 20 and 21 respectively.

The Plenary Session of the Joint Commission and Foreign Ministers' Review Meeting will also be held here on July 22.

UNI RB PA KN2048