February 26, 2010

As reported by the New York Times and other news agencies, India and Pakistan took a first step toward rebuilding confidence on February 25 after a wide-ranging New Delhi meeting between foreign secretaries of both countries that included discussions on terrorism, the Mumbai terrorist attacks, the disputed border region of Kashmir, and competing water claims.

The discussions between the senior diplomats were the first since India froze relations with Pakistan after the November 2008 Mumbai attacks in which Islamist terrorists targeted the India’s financial capital, killing 166 people.

India’s Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao characterized the meeting with her Pakistani counterpart, Salman Bashir, as useful, but noted it would be premature to restart broader bilateral discussions. However, the two sides agreed to keep talking informally.

“We have set out to take a first step toward rebuilding trust, and I believe my meeting with the Pakistan foreign secretary has constituted that first step,” Ms. Rao said.

Few expected any breakthroughs from the meeting, which were seen as a small step in restarting diplomacy between the two nuclear-armed neighbors.

India broke off the formal “composite dialogue” after the Mumbai attacks. For months, India refused to resume dialogue arguing that Pakistan was not aggressively pursuing those responsible for the attacks and that it was doing too little to confront domestic terrorist groups that focus on India. Mr. Bashir expressed frustration with India’s depictions of Pakistan as an “epicenter” for breeding terrorism, describing his country instead as a victim of terrorist groups.

To read more on the resumption of India-Pakistan dialogue, click here