India ''defiant and intransigent'' to resumption of talks: Pakistan

Islamabad, December 8

Pakistan has accused India of being "defiant " to resuming peace talks over the Kashmir dispute.

Foreign Office spokesperson Nafees Zakaria said on Thursday that peace talks should be result-oriented and sustainable. The official claimed India remained “defiant and intransigent” over resuming dialogue despite several gestures by Pakistan, a report on Radio Pakistan said.

US vice president-elect Mike Pence told an American network that president-elect Donald Trump could use his "extraordinary deal-making skills" to lessen tensions between the two countries, when he was asked if Trump would mediate a solution to the dispute.

Zakaria claimed India had refused to allow fact-finding missions to Kashmir, but warned that the international community would make New Delhi accept the demand.

The Foreign Office spokesperson also accused India security forces of flagrant rights abuses in Kashmir.

When asked about India's focus on purchasing arms, he said the "consequent conventional asymmetry" would pose a threat to regional peace and stability, but claimed Pakistan “did not want to indulge in arms race”.

He also accused India of “using negativity” to hide “its crimes in Kashmir” during the recently held ‘Heart of Asia-Istanbul Process’ summit in Amritsar.

Pakistan Prime Minister's Adviser on Foreign Affairs, Zakaria, had attended the meeting last week.

"This also exposed India's claims of commitment to the prospects of peace in Afghanistan as it misused a platform meant for promoting peace and stability in the war torn country," he said.

Pakistan has accused India of mistreatment to its National Security Adviser Sartaj Aziz, who also attended the summit.

A recent unrest in Kashmir that killed more than 80 people and left several thousands injured, subsequent terrorist attacks in the state from militants across the border and heavy cross border shelling have led to ties between the two countries turn frigid lately.

India accuses Pakistan of stoking the Kashmir fire and also accuses it of not having done enough to contain terrorists on soil, even on occasion claiming the neighbour had sponsored terrorism. — Agencies