M A I N   N E W S

Kayani played the spoilsport
Pak Army chief’s intervention during the talks altered Qureshi’s tone and tenor 
Ashok Tuteja
Tribune News Service

The two sides appeared quite relaxed and happy when they broke for lunch around 1300 hrs (Pakistan Standard Time) after the first round of talks. After all, the two sides had painstakingly worked out the agreements during Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao’s visit to Islamabad last month. The agreements were expected to be announced by the foreign ministers. A draft joint statement was also ready in which the two sides had proposed to announce the upcoming meetings between top officials like culture and commerce secretaries, exchange of fishermen and prisoners and other CBMs like LoC trade. The formulation on certain subjects was to be okayed by the two ministers.

The meeting after the lunch also went off reasonably well. But then Kayani came into the picture and reportedly told the civilian leadership that it should not budge an inch on the Kashmir issue and seek a time frame from India for resolving the issue.

The tone and tenor of Qureshi changed at the third and final rounds of the marathon talks. He is said to have insisted on the time frame for settlement of various issues while not being prepared to give the same for the trial of seven LeT operatives being tried in Pakistan courts for their involvement in the Mumbai attacks.

Krishna asked him why the trial could not be speeded up and why the Pakistan Government could not take action against JUD chief Hafiz Saeed, whose involvement in the Mumbai attacks had been established beyond doubt in the dossiers given by India. To this, Qureshi said the judiciary in Pakistan was independent and the government could not do much in the matter.

Meanwhile, when asked why India was reluctant to deal with the Pakistan Army since it happened to be the real power centre in the neighbouring country, official sources said in a sarcastic tone:: “They call themselves a democracy and we have to believe them…we can’t deal with Generals.”

“We know where the power rests in Pakistan but we have to deal with the civilian leadership as long as it is there,” they added. Krishna and Qureshi are now expected to come face to face in another three days when they will attend a conference in Kabul on July 20. The event will review reconciliation moves between the Hamid Karzai regime and the Taliban. It is to be seen if they will hold bilateral talks after their disastrous meeting in Islamabad.

The Hidden Dissuader

l Kayani, seen as the real power centre in Pakistan, called on President Asif Ali Zardari and PM Yousaf Raza Gilani in quick succession just before External Affairs Minister SM Krishna was scheduled to meet them.

l He reportedly insisted the leadership to not budge an inch on Kashmir and told it to force India to give a time frame for resolving the vexed issue.

l It is believed that Qureshi’s reluctance to not give any time frame for completion of the trial of seven LeT operatives in Pakistan courts for their involvement in 26/11 was at Kayanai’s behest.