Indian peace visit to Pakistan

Kashmir is the biggest issue between the two countries

By Shahid Malik in Lahore

An Indian delegation of 12 retired senior military officers has arrived in Pakistan to hold informal discussions to try to improve relations between the two countries.

The Indian ex-servicemen, who reached Lahore by a regular passenger bus on Friday evening, include four army generals, an air marshal and a former naval chief, Admiral L Ramdas, who is the leader of the delegation.

There are rising tensions over Kashmir

Speaking to the journalists at the bus terminal, Admiral Ramdas described the week-long visit as an effort to improve people-to-people understanding, which, he said, could lead to a change of heart between India and Pakistan.

As expected, the retired admiral was questioned about whether the Indian Government was prepared to recognise the Kashmir issue as the only major obstacle in the bilateral relations, a position traditionally taken by Pakistan.

He referred to the Lahore Declaration, signed two years ago by the Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee and his then Pakistani counterpart, Nawaz Sharif. This, he said, had addressed all the core issues, including Kashmir.

He said the two foreign ministers had also prepared a draft timetable to discuss the Kashmir issue and its allied problems. But he said fighting which broke out in Kargil caused a setback to the Lahore process.

Diplomatic formalities

Admiral Ramdas said the latest extension of ceasefire in Kashmir has now offered another opportunity for peace because the Indian Prime Minister's decision has the backing of practically all the political parties.

On Saturday, the Indian visitors will join half a dozen former senior officers of Pakistan's armed forces in an informal discussion at the Punjab Club in Lahore by the English Speaking Union of Pakistan.

Two days later, they will move to Islamabad, where a former president of Pakistan-administered Kashmir, Sardar Abdul Qayum, is holding a lunch in their honour.

They will also visit a Pakistan army regimental centre in Abbottabad, and the ancient sites of Taxila, which are traced back to the period of Maharaja Ashoka.

The delegation arrived in Pakistan on a day when police in Lahore arrested half a dozen people attempting to stage a demonstration against Indian policies in Kashmir.

The call for the abortive demonstration had been given by the right-wing Jamaat-e-Islami.