India, Pakistan NSAs held meeting, confirms MEA spokesperson, says talks on terror can go ahead

During an interaction between the National Security Advisors of India and Pakistan, India made it clear that terror and talks cannot go together but talks on terror can go ahead, media reports said. “I agree that talks took place and our issue was eliminating terrorism from the region. We, of course, raised the issue of cross-border terrorism in those talks,” MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said.

'We have said terror &talks cannot go together but talks on terror can definitely go ahead,' MEA Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar on Pakistan pic.twitter.com/EyTLEDfZUo

— ANI (@ANI) January 11, 2018

I am agreeing that talks took place & our issue was eliminating terrorism from the region, we of course raised the issue of cross-border terrorism in those talks: MEA Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar on NSA level talks b/w India & Pakistan pic.twitter.com/DE26LaOyrL

— ANI (@ANI) January 11, 2018

“India and Pakistan have a dialogue process…However, there are other dialogue mechanisms like at the DGMO level or between the BSF and Pakistan Rangers,” Kumar said. “Similarly, the NSA-level engagement is part of operational-level talks,” Kumar added.

Earlier, media reports had said that a meeting took place between Pakistan’s National Security Advisor Lieutenant General Nasser Khan Janjua (retired) and India’s National Security Advisor Ajit Doval in Thailand. Dawn online  had quoted a senior National Security Division official as saying that the objective of the meeting was to avoid serious missteps over the visit of Kulbhushan Jadhav’s family to Pakistan.

During the meeting, Janjua reported raised the issue of targeting of civilians along the Line of Control while Doval spoke of infiltration.

India has accused Pakistan-based groups of giving rise to militant attacks along the LoC, especially in the Kashmir valley. Ceasefire violations on both sides of the border have increased the tensions in the bilateral relations, Hindustan Times reported

Pakistan’s treatment of Kulbhushan Jadhav’s family members during their visit to the country recently became a cause for heightened tensions with India. Jadhav was captured in March 2016 and has been sentenced to death by a military court.

With inputs from agencies