India, Pakistan Engage In 'Back Channel' Talks To Revive Relations

The development is being seen as a major forward step with an intent to push forward the relationship between India and Pakistan towards normalcy through bilateral engagements.

Beating the retreat ceremony at Attari-Wagah international border. (Representative Image/ Getty)

Islamabad: With Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in the ruling and a coalition government setup in place, Islamabad and New Delhi have been working towards activating backdoor channels of talks to revive the stalled relationship between the nuclear powered arch-rival neighbors. 

The development is being seen as a major forward step with an intent to push forward the relationship between India and Pakistan towards normalcy through bilateral engagements, talks and addressing each other's concerns to find a mutual ground of understanding. 

It is pertinent to note that Indo-Pak relations have remained strained for years after India’s decision to abrogate Article 370 and 35A to change the special status of the state of Jammu and Kashmir. While India calls abrogating Kashmir's special status is country's internal matter, Pakistan maintains that Modi government has illegally done so through a unilateral decision taken on a bilateral dispute of claim between the two countries. 

After India's 2019 decision, Pakistan downgraded diplomatic ties and suspended bilateral trade and insisted that until India reverses its decision of August 5, 2019, there can be no talks on any issue between the two countries. 

"Even before the government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif took charge, the two countries were talking to each other, albeit quietly", said a source with information on the development. 

"Those contacts have led to the renewal of the ceasefire understanding in February 2021 and since then the truce is holding, with no major incident of ceasefire violation," the source added. 

While the ceasefire truce gave hopes of a forward movement towards more engagements on bilateral level between the two countries, it did not yield any positive results of openings during the former premier Imran Khan’s tenure. 

However, under the new government setup in Pakistan, there is a renewed efforts by both sides to explore ways and means to de-escalate tensions and revive the Indo-Pak relations. 

"Call it back channels, Track-II or behind-the-scene talks, I can only confirm that relevant people in both countries are in touch with each other," said an official source. 

It should be noted that immediate results of these back channel engagements are unlikely as both sides have put forward tough preconditions for resumption of dialogue. 

"Pakistan’s policy is clear. We want to engage with everyone, including India. However, Narendra Modi’s hardline government may not show flexibility on the issue of Kashmir," said a government source on the basis on anonymity.  

"India is inclined to the re-engagement but reluctant to offer something that would help Pakistan resume the dialogue," the government source added. 

The source also revealed that western countries including the United States and the United Kingdom, who he said are trying to open some formal channels of communications, are also facilitating the back door channels of engagement between India and Pakistan. 

“India is eager to first resume trade and then other ties with Pakistan. New Delhi is willing to meet wheat shortage of Pakistan by entering into a government-to-government agreement”, the government source stated.