India and Pakistan have failed to break ice on Siachen in the defence secretary level talks. The outcome has been along the expected lines. In the run up to the dialogue both countries had restated their long held official positions on the glacier. India wants authentication and demarcation of the current troop position in Siachen before the armies pull back and Pakistan wants demilitarisation of the glacier and withdrawal of troops to their positions in 1984. The two sides, however, have reaffirmed “their resolve to make serious, sustained and result-oriented efforts for seeking an amicable resolution of Siachen”. They have also acknowledged the holding of ceasefire on the glacier since 2003. If anything, the failure to achieve a modicum of understanding on the dispute has once again underlined the inherent inability in the political systems of the two countries to take the ongoing dialogue to its logical outcome. The process on Siachen makes for an apt example. In the ongoing process for the resolution of outstanding issues between the two countries, the dialogue on Siachen looked most promising. There were some unmistakable signs that a resolution may finally be in sight of this almost three decade old problem. Siachen had particularly come up in the statements of the leaders of the two countries and in a tone that showed some progress.  Pakistan’s powerful army chief General Ashfaq Kiyani specifically called for resolution of Siachen after an avalanche buried 120 Pakistani soldiers. Kiyani’s statement was promptly welcomed by New Delhi. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in his meeting with Pakistan president Asif Ali Zardari also signalled his keenness to make his long-awaited visit to Pakistan a meaningful exercise. He wanted the two countries to do the groundwork for an agreement on some contentious issue. And Siachen appeared to be one of the less contentious issues primed for a major headway. But at the end of it the two countries have ended up reiterating their current positions on the dispute, much like they do on Kashmir. Situation therefore needs to change for the better if the ongoing process has to retain its credibility.

Lastupdate on : Wed, 13 Jun 2012 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Wed, 13 Jun 2012 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Thu, 14 Jun 2012 00:00:00 IST