India, Pakistan restart talks after 2-year gap

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Monday, February 16, 2004

India, Pakistan restart talks after 2-year gap

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Nuclear-armed rivals India and Pakistan began their first formal peace talks in more than two and a half years on Monday, with their dispute over the mainly Muslim Himalayan state of Kashmir high on the agenda.

The three days of meetings in Islamabad between foreign ministry officials, which began just after 11.00 a.m. (0600 GMT), are seen as "talks about talks" and will aim to set the agenda and structure for what is likely to be a long-drawn-out dialogue process.

On Monday, Jalil Abbas Jilani, director general for South Asia in Pakistan's Foreign Ministry, smiled and shook hands with India's Arun Singh, a joint secretary in their External Affairs ministry, before beginning the meeting.

The men will hold two days of talks to pave the way for a meeting on Wednesday between foreign secretaries, the highest-ranking bureaucrats in the rival ministries.

Source: CD/Agencies

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