India reaffirmed on Thursday that any talks with Pakistan have to be firmly bilateral, stating clearly that terror and dialogue cannot go together.
The government also asserted categorically that the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) will continue to be on hold until Pakistan gives up its support to cross-border terror commitment unequivocally and irrevocably.
In a standard press briefing in New Delhi, Ministry of External Affairs official Randhir Jaiswal said, "We have been very clear and consistent in our stance on any kind of engagement with Pakistan — that it must be bilateral. And at the same time, we are clear that talks and terror don't mix.". On terrorism itself, we are willing to negotiate the transfer to India of well-known terrorists whose list was provided to Pakistan several years ago.
Jaiswal also emphasized, "Any bilateral dialogue on Jammu and Kashmir will only revolve around the vacating of illegally-occupied Indian territory by Pakistan. Regarding Indus Waters Treaty, it shall be kept in abeyance till the time Pakistan assiduously and irreversibly relinquishes its patronage of cross-border terrorism. As our Prime Minister has asserted, terror and trade cannot mix, water and blood cannot flow."
This firm reiteration came in the wake of Pakistan's recent overtures for peace talks after India's aggressive Operation Sindoor. Ever since Monday, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has twice made a statement in Islamabad's willingness to talk to India to settle their long-pending disputes.
Speaking at a joint press conference with Iranian President Masood Pezeshkian in Tehran, Sharif stated, "We stand ready to negotiate, in the interest of peace, on water matters with our neighbor. We stand ready to negotiate to increase trade and also, counter-terrorism if they are serious."
Sharif also expressed his willingness for negotiations at the Pakistan-Turkey-Azerbaijan Trilateral Summit in Azerbaijan's Lachin with Presidents Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Ilham Aliyev. I have said in all humility that we desire peace in the region and that is only possible with talks on the table on issues which require immediate attention and friendly settlement. I have said in all seriousness that if India wishes to discuss countering terrorism in sincerity of purpose, Pakistan would be ready to discuss this issue with India as well," he said.
Earlier, Shehbaz Sharif had suggested Saudi Arabia as a neutral location for negotiations with India and had also proposed that the United States might act as a mediator.
In spite of these advances, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has stood firm on India's non-negotiable position on terrorism and territorial integrity. Addressing in Bikaner, Rajasthan during the previous week, PM Modi stated, "If there is to be any discussion, it will be on Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). If Pakistan keeps exporting terrorists, it will be begging for every rupee. It won't get a single drop of Indian water."
Modi also made a strict warning, underlining that "playing with the blood of Indians will cost Pakistan dearly."
Read also| Bangladesh Erupts in Protest After Islamist Leader Acquitted of Liberation War Crimes
