New Delhi: India and Pakistan will not be meeting anytime soon as relations between the two countries continue to be strained with no formal or informal meet on the cards in the near future, top sources said.
“There needs to be something positive for talks to happen. There is no such thing happening,” sources told News18.
In fact, there is also no discussion of a meeting on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit in June in China, where both nations are participating.
Mincing no words at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) meet in China on Tuesday, external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj said that the fight against terrorism was not just limited to eliminating militants but must also include taking strict action against states that encourage terrorism.
“Terrorism is an enemy of the basic human rights: of life, peace and prosperity. We strongly believe that our fight against terrorism should not only seek to eliminate terrorists but should also identify and take strong measures against States that encourage, support and finance terrorism and provide sanctuary to terrorists and terror groups,” Swaraj said at the SCO foreign ministers meet, adding that there was an imminent need to build a security architecture to combat it.
Her statement came as China reaffirmed its support to Pakistan, a country that India has constantly accused of harbouring terrorists and supporting them.
Recently, Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed called for a meaningful dialogue between the two countries. His statement came after Indian Army Chief General Bipin Rawat said that peace was the only way forward to resolve the Kashmir issue.
Despite statements that garnered hope of a solution among various parties, reports on Tuesday said that four Pakistani soldiers had been killed in retaliatory firing along the Line of Control (LoC) in Krishnaghati area of Jammu & Kashmir. India and Pakistan have also been embroiled in several instances of diplomatic harassment issues, which they later agreed to “resolve.”
Earlier this month, India had asked Pakistan to ensure safety and security of its officials working at the Indian mission in Islamabad, saying they continue to face "harassment" and "intimidation".
In its 16th 'Note Verbale' to the Pakistan Foreign Ministry on March 22, the Indian High Commission specifically mentioned three incidents of harassment of senior officials.
Pakistan had claimed that there had been as many as 26 instances of harassment and intimidation of its diplomats since March 7, following which Islamabad called back its high commissioner Sohail Mahmood for discussions on the issue. He, however, returned to New Delhi on March 22.
Further, Pakistan let Mumbai attacks mastermind Hafiz Saeed to contest polls, a move which was strongly criticized by the Modi-led government.
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