The Hindu : India proposes dates for talks on air links

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Oct 28, 2003

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India proposes dates for talks on air links

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI OCT. 27. In a follow-up to the Pakistan-specific announcements by the External Affairs Minister, Yashwant Sinha, on Wednesday last, India today proposed two sets of dates for the second round of talks for resuming the air links between the two countries.

An External Affairs Ministry spokesman said that a proposal had been conveyed to Pakistan through diplomatic channels for scheduling the talks either for November 3 and 4 or, alternatively, November 10 and 11. While announcing the confidence-building measures last week, Mr. Sinha had indicated the willingness to resume the stalled talks on the civil aviation links.

He was, however, firm that India was not likely to give an "all-time guarantee" that overflights by Pakistani civil aircraft would never be stopped in future, a categorical assurance that Islamabad has been seeking.

India banned air links with Pakistan, including overflight facilities, from January 1, 2002, soon after the December 13, 2001, attack on Parliament. Pakistan retaliated with a similar ban and the first sign of a thaw in the matter came in May this year when the Pakistan Prime Minister, Mir Zaffarullah Khan Jamali, telephoned the Prime Minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, and suggested the resumption of road and air links.

The first round of talks was held in Islamabad in August this year between the civil aviation authorities of the two countries. Pakistan wanted India to give guarantees that there would be no ban on overflights if the two countries ever snapped air links in future. India refused to give any such guarantee.

Since January 2002, west-bound Indian civil aircraft have been avoiding Pakistani airspace and have been taking a circuitous route over the Persian Gulf. Pakistan too has been avoiding Indian airspace and its civilian flights have been taking a longer route to reach eastern destinations.

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