Missile tests pact between Pakistan, India next month
Pakistan Times Staff Report

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and India will formally sign the recently agreed pact on advance notification of missile tests early next month when the two foreign secretaries will meet to review progress on the second round of peace talks.

Besides, the top officials of two foreign ministries, in their talks likely to be held on 1st and 2nd September, would also announce the establishment of hotline between them to avert accidental or illegal use of nuclear weapons.

Officials here said that Foreign Secretary Riaz Muhammad Khan would also discuss with his Indian counterpart the two main items on composite dialogue agenda, Kashmir as well as Peace and Security.

However, they said owing to recurrence of intransigence in Indian behavior, any breakthrough on Kashmir problem was not expected.

They said that the two foreign secretaries would also deliberate on the agenda of upcoming meeting between the President Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the sidelines of UN General Assembly meeting in September.

Concerns by Pakistan

Pakistan’s foreign secretary would convey his country’s concerns to his Indian counterpart on the slow pace of the peace process with a demand of initiation of meaningful talks on the core issue of Kashmir, an official said.

He said Pakistan’s impression was that progress in the arena of CBMs had been tangible citing the example of recently held successful nuclear talks and earlier accord on Srinagar-Muzaffarabad bus service.

As for Kashmir, Pakistani authorities believe it is time now to touch upon this issue with an aim at its negotiated settlement and this is the clear message that the foreign secretary Khan would be delivering to his Indian counterpart, the official added.●