NSA Talks: Mufti Sayeed blames Pakistan, hopes Ufa thaw ‘will not go waste’

CM Sayeed said he was disappointed over the abrupt cancellation of bilateral meeting between India and Pakistan NSAs and that he wants to see both the countries "walk the bridge of trust together".

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Jammu and Kashmir CM Mufti Mohammed Sayeed said he hoped that break in India Pakistan NSA-level talks would be “temporary and the thaw achieved at Ufa (Russia), where Prime Ministers of the two countries met and exhibited great camaraderie, will not be allowed to go waste.”

J&K Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed has expressed disappointment over the cancellation of NSA-level talks between India and Pakistan, and blamed Pakistan for it.

“The Indo-Pak relationship over the years has become multi-dimensional and multi-lateral, with each sphere dealing with specified issues like trade, travel, CBMs, diplomatic and political matters,” Mufti said. “It is neither warranted nor desirable to insist on all-inclusive participation, directly or indirectly, in each and every bilateral meeting, like that between the two NSAs.”

Mufti said Pakistan should welcome the “warm gesture” of New Delhi. “We wish the hostility between the two countries ends so that people, who have suffered due to prolonged confrontation, live together as peaceful neighbours,” he said. “Dialogue is the only way forward to restore peace and stability in the region.”

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Expressing disappointment over the cancellation of talks, he hoped that the “Ufa thaw” in relations between the two countries would “not go waste”.

“Our state has been the worst casualty of continued confrontation and terrorism. J&K and its people cannot afford to bear the huge losses resulting from continued instability in the region,” he added.

Bashaarat Masood

Bashaarat Masood is a Special Correspondent with The Indian Express. He has been covering Jammu and Kashmir, especially the conflict-ridden Kashmir valley, for two decades. Bashaarat joined The Indian Express after completing his Masters in Mass Communication and Journalism from the University in Kashmir. He has been writing on politics, conflict and development. Bashaarat was awarded with the Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Awards in 2012 for his stories on the Pathribal fake encounter. ... Read More

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