India-Pakistan Talks Must Include the People

THE Indian offer to resume bilateral talks and Pakistan’s positive response deserve the support of all peace-loving people on both sides of the border, even though the objective of the meeting between the foreign secretaries is primarily “feeling the pulse”.

No one should be surprised at the attempts in both camps to hedge their bets. India has tried to say that its offer for talks does not mean a resumption of the composite dialogue that was suspended over a year ago. Pakistan has argued that the talks this month should at least be a step towards revival of the disrupted dialogue.

At the same time Prime Minister Gilani has said that New Delhi has been goaded into making the present gesture by external actors, implying India’s incapacity for a rational move on its own. These are plainly crude attempts at placating hawkish elements on both sides, that have been nourished at state expense for decades.