https://www.theweek.in/news/india/2021/ ... meets.html
Thaw in India-Pakistan relations as Indus Water Commission meets after two years
'Cordial' discussion between neighbours comes after two years of tense relations
Mandira Nayar March 23, 2021
It is officially a thaw. In the first major engagement between India and Pakistan after a deep freeze post the scrapping of article 370 in 2019, a meeting of the Indus Water Commission was held on Tuesday.
The meeting comes after a gap of two years. On the agenda is the rather contentious issue of hydropower projects that India has cleared in Ladakh, which Pakistan has objected to. While there has been no official statement as yet—there is a possibility of a joint statement later—sources claim the discussions were “cordial’’ and centre around old projects.
“Pakistan wants to have friendly relations with all countries including India,’’ said Charge d’ Affairs Aftab Hasan at the Pakistan Day event held at the Pakistan High Commission in Delhi on Tuesday. To achieve peace both countries shall resolve all outstanding issues, he added.
The meeting of the Indus Water Commissioners may be the first tangible engagement between the two countries in a long while, but it comes on the heels of signalling of softening on both sides. In February, the two sides surprised the world by conjuring up a mythical beast in the world of the India-Pakistan relation: The joint statement.
“The two sides reviewed the situation along the Line of Control (LoC) and all other sectors in a free, frank and cordial atmosphere," the statement said. “In the interest of achieving mutually beneficial and sustainable peace along the borders, the two DGMOs agreed to address each other’s core issues and concerns which have the propensity to disturb the peace and lead to violence." Both sides agreed to strictly observe “all agreements, understandings and cease firing along the LoC and all other sectors with effect from midnight 24/25 Feb 2021," the statement read.
The agreement—which indicates that there were channels open between the two governments despite the hostility—has sparked off various theories. There is a suggestion of the American nudge—President Joe Biden wants to ensure a stable Afghanistan—as well, as well as a report by Bloomberg on Monday that suggested that the UAE brokered the deal. The ministry of external affairs has not issued a statement so far.
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https://www.dawn.com/news/1614202/talks ... r-projects
Talks begin on India’s disputed hydropower projects
Amjad Mahmood, March 24, 2021
LAHORE: Pakistan and India began their first talks under the Permanent Indus Commission in two and a half years in New Delhi on Tuesday to resolve the longstanding dispute over the hydroelectric projects India is building on the River Chenab.
Reuters news agency quoted an Indian official as playing down prospects for a “breakthrough” in the ongoing talks. Pakistan’s delegation could not be contacted for its comments despite several attempts by Dawn.
Pakistan is concerned that India’s plans for hydroelectric plants — Pakal Dul and Lower Kalnai dams — on the Chenab in the disputed region of Kashmir would damage the flow of the river into its territory.
On the other hand, India defends the construction of the dams by saying they are allowed by the Indus Water Treaty brokered by the World Bank.
“It is our job to find a middle path. But to say we can achieve something is maybe a bit too optimistic,” an Indian official involved in the talks told Reuters. “There are many things on which we can’t compromise,” he added.
The talks are set to end on Wednesday (today).
In recent weeks, the two countries have taken some tentative steps like resumption of a ceasefire on the Line of Control to improve ties and conciliatory gestures made by both sides.
Pakistan’s Indus Commissioner Syed Mehr Ali Shah, who is leading the country’s eight-member team, could not be contacted despite attempts as his cell phone remained switched off.
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Gautam