Army chief says Pak should accept Siachen line

As India and Pakistan met in Rawalpindi today to exchange new proposals on the demilitarisation of Siachen glacier, Army chief General J J S...

As India and Pakistan met in Rawalpindi today to exchange new proposals on the demilitarisation of Siachen glacier, Army chief General J J Singh made it clear in New Delhi that Pakistan would have to authenticate the 110 km actual ground position line (AGPL) on the Saltoro ridge to ‘‘safeguard India’s future interests.’’

‘‘We want the present positions on the ground (on the AGPL) to be authenticated one way or the other,’’ said Gen Singh. From June 2, he will start visiting Siachen, Kargil and Leh with officers of the Northern Command. He is scheduled to visit the Valley later in June.

Stating that ‘‘the CBMs with Pakistan are going very well’’, he said casualties along the border were down. But he said the situation in the western and eastern sectors were different, pointing out that no proxy war was being fought on the China border.

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In Rawalpindi, on the first day of their two-day talks, Defence Secretary Ajai Vikram Singh and his Pakistani counterpart General (retd) Tariq Waseem Ghazi met at the Pakistan Army headquarters.

‘‘Discussions on new proposals are continuing. We will meet again tomorrow to carry the talks forward,’’ said a senior official without spelling out details of the proposals discussed.

An official statement issued by Pakistan said the talks were held in a cordial and friendly atmosphere.

‘‘Both sides will hold further discussion on the subject tomorrow and a joint statement will be issued at the concluding session of the talks,’’ it said.

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President Musharraf has said he expects significant breakthroughs over the next two days on the Siachen dispute. So far, Islamabad has stuck to its demand for full demilitarisation of the Saltoro ridge beyond Point NJ-9842, at the end of the LoC, and the creation of a zone of disengagement.

In New Delhi, the Army has already made a detailed presentation to the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) chaired by the Prime Minister. Director General Military Operations Lt Gen Madan Gopal, who briefed the CCS, is part of the team currently in Rawalpindi.

—(With PTI from Islamabad)