The Hindu : Pak. ready for talks with Indian civil aviation experts

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Jul 17, 2003

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International - India & World

Pak. ready for talks with Indian civil aviation experts

By B. Muralidhar Reddy

ISLAMABAD July 16. Pakistan says it is ready for talks at the level of civil aviation experts with India to discuss issues related to the resumption of suspended air links and the allowing of over-flight facilities.

Islamabad's response today came after India conveyed on June 24 its readiness for expert level talks on the various issues arising from the suspension of air flights and over-flight facilities on January 1, 2002.

"Pakistan has agreed to host expert-level talks between the civil aviation authorities of Pakistan and India to consider all aspects for resumption of air links between the two countries," an announcement by the Foreign Ministry said here. The dates for the meeting would be fixed "after mutual consultations" in due course, it said adding that the proposal had been communicated to the Government of India.

The proposal certainly augurs well for the Indian High Commissioner-designate, Shivshankar Menon, who today began what is perhaps one of India's "most delicate missions". He is expected to present his credentials to the Pakistan President, Pervez Musharraf, before the month end.

Though Pakistan has offered to host the talks, the issue of restoration of air links is expected to prove to be contentious particularly because Islamabad is demanding guarantees that in future when air links are suspended, they should not automatically cover over-flight facilities.

Last week, in a blunt response to India's proposal for the resumption of air links, Pakistan said it would not be inclined to consider it unless New Delhi was prepared to give guarantees that any future suspension of air links would not automatically entail stoppage of over-flight facilities.

After India made the offer for restoration of air links (May 2 statement of Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee), the Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson, Masood Khan, made it known on Monday that Islamabad would like the issue of restoration of air links to be de-linked from over-flight facilities. When India sought a clarification on the issue, Pakistan had initially said it was a matter to be decided by technical experts. Last fortnight, India agreed for a meeting of technical experts.

Mr. Khan told a news conference here that "over-flights have a different dimension. India since January 2002 suspended over-flights for Pakistan and we have to react". Pakistan suggested a meeting of civil aviation officials of the two countries to "ensure that that one party would not be able to withdraw over-flight rights of other country".

"This can create a very messy situation. Air links yes. There is no automatically for over flights. For that we will have to have a mechanism and modalities and will have to come to an agreement in accordance with international obligations and treaties," he said.

It is about nine weeks since the two sides expressed their desire for reviving the air links and yet the proposal has not moved forward. At the heart of the controversy is the question of allowing over-flight facilities on a reciprocal basis.

Pakistan deliberately adopted the stance to first register its unhappiness over the decision of New Delhi to suspend over-flight facilities from January 1, 2002, along with snapping of air links. Second, in the perception of Islamabad while it is the right of any country to suspend air links, allowing over-flight facilities falls in a separate category. Pakistan seems to believe that as a bigger country India has suffered a bigger economic loss on account of suspension of over-flight facilities.

"It is for the third time since the 1971 war that India has unilaterally suspended the over-flight facility. We believe that the issue of suspension of air links and over-flight facility should be linked. This is the reason Pakistan did not respond positively in June last year when India proposed restoration of over-flight facilities," a senior official in the Foreign Office said.

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