The weekend was spiced up by the prospect of a breakthrough on Indo-Pak talks.
Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, in an interview with Turkey’s Anadolu Agency, said that if New Delhi were wiling to revisit its annexation of Jammu and Kashmir in 2019 — then Islamabad would commit to resolving all outstanding issues. Of course, this statement did not appear in a vacuum. Last month, Pakistan’s Army chief said something similar while calling on both countries to “bury the past” following the joint ceasefire along the Line of Control (LoC) that was announced in February.
Elsewhere, international media earlier this month reported that backchannel talks between the two sides began in January, with the UAE playing mediator. Qureshi, for his part, appeared to refute this, insisting that if and when talk happen — the nation will be taken into confidence. He did, however, admit that “intelligence-level” talks have “always existed” between the two countries.
It doesn’t really matter who is saying or not saying what. The bottom line is the same. The spooks of both countries are likely speaking to each other and this is to be welcomed, regardless of whether this is a usual or unusual turn of events. For only strategic negotiations — as opposed to emotional political outbursts — can deliver meaningful and long lasting results.
The rapid rise of Hindutva ideology in India in recent years has naturally impacted religious minorities in that country. Muslims have been the the main target of mass killings and torture. Indeed, the revoking of Article 370 and 35A of the Indian Constitution in 2019, which provides special status to -held Kashmir — in areas of lawmaking and preserving permanent residence — were extreme measures for the Modi government to take and sent a strong message to the Muslim-majority territory. We still remember the Indian misadventure of the 2019 surgical strikes when Pakistan responded in kind and shot down two Indian fighter planes.
It’s time to let the state agencies get to work behind-the-scenes. India is currently bearing the Covid burnt and its healthcare system is facing total collapse. While Pakistan is poised to cross the rubicon in terms of the spread of Corona
This incident and the sequence of events that happened afterwards revealed the strategic capacity of both countries. Perhaps, it was this compelling element that prompted Indian Director General Military Operations (DGMO) to invite his Pakistani counterpart to negotiations regarding the LoC ceasefire. It was a major breakthrough between the two arch rivals, followed by the “strategic quiet talks”.
Over the decades, we have seen no positive end-result either in terms of the dozens of UN resolutions on Kashmir, track-II diplomacy efforts, political composite dialogues or international reports documenting human rights violations of Muslims in Occupied Kashmir. We would therefore do well to let these “quiet talks” fall off the radar for the time being or at least until the relevant strategic institutions detail possible solutions.
It is overwhelmingly obvious that Pakistan’s top civil and military leadership are on the same page for these hush-hush talks, after “India proposed that the two countries start talking on all outstanding issues side by side instead of lumping them together in a composite dialogue”. We believe that this positive spirit truly exists across the border and that our neighbour is eager to explore all options leading to a lowering of tensions. After all, we are both nuclear nations. The changing dynamics on both sides reflect hopes for rationality to triumph over the hawkish approach that still exists within decision-making circles.
No doubt, it is an opportune time for both countries to take a strategic pause from the cycle of violence and focus on domestic issues. We hope that Pakistan achieves its primary goal of persuading India to reinstate special status for -held Kashmir. While Pakistan’s state institutions assert that India has agreed not to bring about any demographic changes in the disputed territory — we are not beholden to believe it. Both governments have also agreed to refrain from involving a third party, at least for now.
It has been reported that this latest round of backchannel contact between Pakistan and India geared up only last December, despite initially being floated back in 2017. It was then prime minister, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, who gave the go-ahead. The dialogue, however, hit a bump in the road recently, when the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) announced the decision to allow imports of sugar and wheat from India, only to be railroaded by the federal cabinet. Some members, including FM Qureshi, opposed the move.
It’s time to let the state agencies get to work behind- the-scenes. Meanwhile, both governments will have to work sincerely on the most pressing issue of all: trying to contain Covid-19. India is currently bearing the burnt and its healthcare system is facing total collapse, with severe shortages of oxygen and hospital beds. Pakistan, in an act of genuine solidarity, has offered ventilators and other medical equipment. At home, Pakistan is poised to cross the rubicon in terms of the spread of Corona. The government has deployed the Army across 16 cities to enforce the SOPs set out by the National Command and Operations Centre (NCOC). After tackling this crisis, the civilian leadership must return focus to the economy, poverty alleviation and social sector development. It would be wonderful if steps are taken in the right direction without any discrimination.
The writer is a freelance journalist and broadcaster, Director Devcom-Pakistan, an Islamabad-based think tank. He can be reached at [email protected] and tweets @EmmayeSyed