New Delhi: Pakistan on Saturday countered India's tough stance on NSA-level talks, saying that it is not ready to accept conditions on composite dialogue, sources said.
According to the sources, Pakistan rejected India's condition of keeping Kashmir out of talks and of not meeting Kashmiri separatist leaders.
This came just minutes after External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said that the NSA-level talks would focus only on the issue of terrorism.
While addressing a press conference, Swaraj said, "There cannot be talk with terror, but there can be talk on terror, and it is a must…the understanding in Ufa clearly stated in writing that the agenda was decided.
On the issue of not allowing Pakistan NSA Sartaj Aziz to meet Hurriyat leaders, the Union Minister said that it was decided in the Shimla accord that no third party should be involved when India and Pakistan sit to talk.
Stopping short of cancelling the talks, the External Affairs Minister said, "We are ready to welcome Sartaj Aziz if he doesn't involve any third party and if talks remain confined to terror, as discussed in Ufa by the leaders of the two countries."
Earlier on Saturday, National Security Adviser Sartaj Aziz, who is scheduled to travel to New Delhi on Sunday for talks with his Indian counterpart Ajit Doval, told a press conference in Islamabad that he is ready to travel to India as per schedule but without any pre-conditions.
He criticised the Indian government for its insistence that he should not meet Kashmiri separatist leaders while in New Delhi.
"Pakistan wants to discuss modalities of Kashmir issues, it is a complex issue...We never expected any breakthrough in the meeting, but current issues could be resolved," said Aziz.
He further said that Pakistan was worried about the arrest and detention of separatist leaders ahead of NSA-level talks.
Given that there is no likelihood of India changing its stand that separatist Hurriyat had no role in Indo-Pak talks, the possibility of NSAs meeting is remote.
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