External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said during a press conference that Pakistan took 22 days to respond to India’s call for NSA talks and that if talks were to happen Pakistan should not involve any third party. “Talks with terror cannot happen, but talks on terror are desirable,” said Sushma Swaraj. “If Pakistan does not agree to India’s position, there will be no talks,” added Swaraj. Meanwhile, NSA Sartaj Aziz said at a press conference in Islamabad today that he is still prepared to hold talks with his counterpart Ajit Doval without any pre-conditions. Aziz’s press conference comes just minutes after a Kashmiri separatist leader was detained by the Delhi police upon his arrival in New Delhi. Shabir Shah, the separatist leader, had come to New Delhi for the scheduled reception with Aziz. In a jibe at India, Aziz added that he was disturbed to hear the news of arrest of Hurriyat leaders and said that it is a ‘violation of their fundamental rights.’ Answering questions from journalists, Aziz said that even though he does not expect a breakthrough in talks, the meeting will help evolve a mechanism to address issues. He added that no serious dialogue with India is possible without including Kashmir in talks.
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