TIL Desk/World/New Delhi/ Over a fortnight after their meeting, the government on Thursday confirmed that National Security Advisor Ajit Doval held talks with his Pakistani counterpart Lt Gen Nasser Khan Janjua (retd) in Thailand, noting that ‘talks on terror’ can definitely go ahead.
Raveesh Kumar, the spokesperson of the Ministry of External Afairs, told reporters that the focus of the ‘operational-level talks’ was ‘cross-border terror’ and ways to ensure the elimination of terrorism from the region.He said India has been maintaining that terror and talks cannot go together, but talks on terror can definitely go ahead.
“India and Pakistan have a dialogue process and we have said terror and talks cannot go together. Besides that, there are several other dialogue mechanisms between India and Pakistan. Talks take place at the DGMO (Director General of Military Operations) level. There have been meetings between the BSF (Border Security Force) and Pakistan Rangers as part of a regular mechanism.
“Similarly, the NSA-level engagement is part of the operational-level talks. We have said that terror and talks cannot go together, but talks on terror can definitely go ahead,” Kumar said. He said the issue of cross-border terrorism was raised in the meeting.
