Sanjha Morcha

Pak ‘not desperate’ for talks

Islamabad, June 6

Pakistan is “not desperate” to resume peace talks with India which has never opened a window of opportunity for dialogue and goodwill with it, Adviser on Foreign Affairs to Prime Minister Sartaj Aziz has said.“It is a very strange thing to say as it was decided here on December 9 that the dialogue will resume but then the Pathankot incident occurred and everything vanished into thin air,” Aziz told a news channel yesterday.His remarks came in response to Indian Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar’s recent statement that the window for dialogue with Pakistan was “slowly closing”.Aziz said if India continues to repeat the old allegation of terrorism when it comes to the negotiating table, they must remember that terrorism is a part of the composite dialogue that Pakistan proposes, Dawn reported.“They say that they will talk if we (Pakistan) make some progress on terrorism, but we say that they (India) should talk on all issues, including Kashmir,” Aziz said.Aziz also said that Pakistan was “not desperate for talks and there is no restlessness on the Pakistani side for dialogue”.“The whole world agrees that India and Pakistan should have composite dialogue,” Aziz said, adding if the region has to see peace, it has to see co-ordination first.Aziz said Pakistan was not unaware of Indian efforts to integrate Kashmir and change its demography as “such efforts by India would not succeed”. Pakistan is supporting the Kashmiri people “morally and diplomatically” and will raise the issue with the UN General Assembly, Human Rights Council and also with permanent members of UN Security Council, he said. — PTI