NEW DELHI, India, Feb. 1: Reuter: Indian and Pakistani officials agreed today to meet for a third day to consider specific proposals aimed at reducing tension along their border, an Indian External Affairs Ministry spokesman said.
The spokesman told reporters each side came up with a set of proposals during the talks and the two teams would discuss them before the meeting ended tomorrow.
“Discussions continued on concrete measures to prevent further escalation of tension on the border and to deescalate the tension”, the spokesman said.
The talks, originally scheduled to end today, were called after Delhi and Islamabad massed troops on the border for military exercises. The extensive deployments set off a crisis with both sides trading charges of border provocations.
The spokesman said the talks were held in a frank, businesslike and cordial atmosphere but refused to comment on the separate sets of proposals.
The Pakistani team of 10 was led by their top diplomat, Foreign Secretary Abdul Sattar, and included senior military officials. The Indian team, led by the temporary head of the Indian diplomatic service, Alfred Gonsalves, also had senior defense officials.
The crisis began after Pakistan held annual winter exercises, informing India of them. India then began to mass troops at the border and put its armed forces an alert, saying Pakistan had not withdrawn its troops after the man oeuvres.
Article extracted from this publication >> February 6, 1987
