NEW DELHI, India: India has advised Pakistan not to meet Kashmiri separatist leaders, saying such talks will not be “appropriate” ahead of the security advisors level talks between the two countries.
In series of tweets, the Indian External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said that such a meeting would not be in keeping with the spirit and intent of the understanding reached at the Russian City of Ufa in July to jointly work to combat terrorism.
India has advised Pakistan yesterday that it would not be appropriate for Mr. Sartaz Aziz to meet with Hurriyat representatives in India
— Vikas Swarup (@MEAIndia) August 21, 2015
Such a meeting would not be in keeping with the spirit and intent of the Ufa understanding to jointly work to combat terrorism.
— Vikas Swarup (@MEAIndia) August 21, 2015
On Thursday, the Pakistan Foreign Office said that the planned meeting of Sartaj Aziz with the Hurriyat leaders in New Delhi is a routine matter.
“Pakistan expects India to allow Kashmiri leaders to meet the Advisor to the Prime Minister on National Security and Foreign Affairs,” the Foreign Office Spokesman Qazi Khalilullah said at his weekly media briefing in Islamabad.
“Kashmiris are important stakeholders in the context of Jammu and Kashmir dispute and efforts to seek its peaceful settlement in accordance with the UN Security Council Resolutions,” Qazi Khalilullah said.
Earlier a couple of days, the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi invited the Hurriyat Conference leaders including Syed Ali Shah Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Yasin Malik to hold talks with the Pakistan national security advisor Sartaj Aziz when he will reach India on August 23 for security talks with his Indian Counterpart Ajit Doval.
The Indian external affairs ministry spokesperson also said in a tweet that his country has sought confirmation of the agenda which was proposed for the national security advisors level talks and conveyed to Pakistan on August 18.
We have also sought confirmn of our proposed agenda for the NSA level talks that was conveyed to the Pakistani side on 18 Aug 2015.
— Vikas Swarup (@MEAIndia) August 21, 2015
