Pak Army, ISI Want to Be Involved in Talks with India

If reports from diplomatic and other sources are to be believed, Pakistan Army and Inter-Service Intelligence agency (ISI) have initiated serious efforts to be involved in dialogue with India.

According to reports, the two organizations believe that they can play a role because they are intrinsically linked to policy-making in Pakistan.

The sources said that ISI chief Lt Gen Shuja Pasha, a trusted aide of powerful army chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, has been instrumental in the move and purportedly brought the matter up for discussion during a meeting with the three defence advisers in the Indian High Commission earlier this month.

In the meeting held on July 3, Pasha is reported to have suggested to the defence advisors representing India’s army, navy and air forces that the ISI and the Pakistan Army should find a place in bilateral talks as they played a key role in helping the foreign ministry formulate its policies, diplomatic and other sources said.

Over the past few weeks, members of the Pakistani security establishment have privately sounded out Pakistani journalists about the need for the ISI and the army to have a role in talks with India.

The journalists were told that talks with India would be more meaningful if New Delhi was in “direct contact” with the ISI and the army as they were the real “power centres” in Pakistan.

Officials of the Indian High Commission refused to comment on the development. The Pakistan Army spokesman too could not be reached for a reaction.