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More cross border CBM's are on the cards, No breakthrough on Siachen yet
Calcutta News.Net
Tuesday 20th May, 2008 (ANI)
Islamabad, May 20 : After day long marathon meetings between the Foreign Secretaries of India and Pakistan, and Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee's meetings with Nawaz Sharif, Asif Ali Zardari and Asfayandar Wali Khan, both countries reportedly are very close to signing an agreement on cross border trade, which may include the opening of the road between Kargil and Skardu, increasing the frequency of buses plying between the two Kashmirs, the launch of a bilateral postal service and also the launch of an ambitious helicopter service between Muzaffarabad and Srinagar.
According to sources, another key agreement that could be sealed is one on giving consular access to the prisoners languishing in the jails of India and Pakistan.
Expressing gratitude on deferring the hanging of Sarabjit Singh, the Indian on death row in Pakistan for the last 18 years, Foreign Secretary Shiv Shankar Menon said the issue was not about a single individual, but a larger humanitarian issue.
Pakistan also announced that it would releasing 96 Indian fishermen and three Indian civilians as a goodwill gesture.
Menon said that the long standing issues of Sir Creek and Siachen also came up for discussion during the talks, but both sides failed to reach any common ground. However, expressing optimism on resolving the bottlenecks on the two issues, Menon said: "Sir Creek and Siachen are solvable".
He confirmed that both issues would figure in the talks between Foreign Ministers' Pranab Mukherjee and Shah Mahmoud Qureshi on Wednesday.
Pakistan and India have already undertaken a joint survey of Sir Creek and the Siachen Glacier.
The two countries have mooted making Siachen a "Mountain of Peace", and Menon said there was a proposal to conduct joint mountain climbing expeditions to address the environmental concerns of both countries.
Cross Border terrorism, infiltration, the release of prisoners also come up during the discussion.
Mukherjee will also call on President Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Wednesday before returning to New Delhi. By Naveen Kapoor
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