Peace talks with Pakistan only when it stops supporting terror: Army chief
The Hindu
By PTI December 22, 2017
Indian
Army chief General Bipin Rawat on Friday said peace talks with Pakistan can
take place only when it stops supporting terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir.
Given
its actions, it doesn’t appear that Pakistan really wants peace, the Army chief
added.
He
was in the western sector, close to the India-Pakistan border,
to witness the ‘Hamesha Vijayee’ exercise conducted by the Southern Command in
Thar desert.
Gen.
Rawat said Pakistan should stop supporting terrorists.
“Only
then can we say that peace talks should take place,” he told reporters in the
exercise area near Barmer.
“We
also want relations should be better but given what kind of actions there are
(from their side) and terrorism is spreading in Jammu and Kashmir, it doesn’t
appear that they really want peace,” Mr. Rawat said.
'Anti-militancy operations will
continue'
The
Army, paramilitary forces and Jammu and Kashmir police have been taking actions
against militants in Jammu and Kashmir successfully and the action will
continue, he added.
Gen.
Rawat’s comments come a day after Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson
Raveesh Kumar said India would like good relations with Pakistan provided
Islamabad takes action against terror groups.
“It
is important for Pakistan to understand our core concern, which is terrorism.
We have time and again asked them to take action against terrorists who are
operating from their soil. This is something they (Pakistan) will have to
handle if they are serious in cultivating this friendship,” Mr. Kumar said.
The
assertions follow Pakistan’s Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa pledging his support for better ties.
According
to media reports, Mr. Bajwa has said he will support any initiative of the
civilian government to resolve issues with India through talks.
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