New Delhi has given Islamabad “full dossiers” on terrorist camps and organisations operating in Pakistani territory, but Pakistan is in denial about their presence, India’s Minister of State for External Affairs Anand Sharma has said. “They know the names and organisations we have been naming, the same organisations have been acted upon,” Mr Sharma said in response to a question in an interview with the Indian Express. “We have given them details of camps. They have been given complete dossiers. They are in denial. The problem is that we have a foreign policy, the Pakistanis only have an India policy. India is their obsession.”
Asked about the future of the peace process between the two countries after the suspension of foreign secretary talks, Mr Sharma said: “The talks must continue. But there should be a conducive atmosphere for the talks to take place.”
He blamed the breakdown of the peace talks on the “provocative and uncalled for” statements from Pakistan following the Mumbai blasts. “We started the dialogue process with Pakistan with a set of confidence building measures. We have people-to-people contacts, academic delegations from both countries visiting each other, the bus service, scholarships to students, exchange of parliamentary delegations. After all, we are addressing six decades of mistrust. But dialogue is a two-way process. Pakistan has also made assurances to us on many counts. But foreign policy is a reflection of domestic realities. We cannot close our eyes when hundreds of our people are getting killed. Both the countries have a commitment to continue with the dialogue process. However, in the wake of the Mumbai blasts, Pakistan is in a mode of denial. And their statements are not helpful for the dialogue process to continue,” Mr Sharma said. |