INDIA: India and Pakistan agreed yesterday to establish a "hotline" to reduce nuclear tension and the possibility of an atomic accident between the two rivals, who came close to war two years ago writes Rahul Bedi in New Delhi
At the end of two days of talks in New Delhi on nuclear matters as part of a wider peace initiative, the neighbours also agreed to continue their unilateral moratorium on nuclear testing, unless their respective "national interests" were threatened by "extraordinary events".
After years of animosity and military confrontation, India and Pakistan agreed earlier this year to initiate peace talks to try and ease tension that had transformed the region into a " nuclear flashpoint".
The nuclear talks that began on Saturday were the first after the two sides became atomic weapon states within weeks of one another in 1998.
Ever since, India and Pakistan have frequently exchanged nuclear threats whenever levels of tension between them, almost always high, have threatened to escalate into war.
The talks were also the first after the Communist-backed Congress Party alliance replaced the Hindu nationalist coalition last month, following general elections.
The neighbours, who have fought three wars and engaged in an 11-week conflict in 1999 since independence 57 years ago, also agreed to formalise arrangements to notify each other before conducting missile tests.
The proposed "dedicated and secure" hotline between the respective foreign secretaries was being set up to "prevent misunderstandings and reduce risks relevant to nuclear issues", the official statement declared.
The existing hotline between senior military commanders, who converse every Tuesday, would also be "upgraded, dedicated and secured".
The "hotline" between the directors general of military operations in India and Pakistan, set up in the mid-1980s, assumed significance whenever tension, triggered by cross-border artillery duels, mounted.
Neither India nor Pakistan were signatories to either the Non-Proliferation Treaty or the Fissile Material Cut-Off Treaty and both were hit by US-led sanctions following their 1998 tests.
The US, however, eased sanctions after 9/11, as it needed help from Pakistan - and to a lesser extent from India - to fight al-Qaeda and its Taliban sponsors in Afghanistan that it held responsible for the attacks.
Despite their continuing animosity, however, the two sides joined forces at the Delhi talks to indirectly upbraid the nuclear weapon states - Britain, China, France, Russia and the USA - who have repeatedly expressed concern regarding the "stability" of their nuclear arsenals.
"Both countries called for regular working level meetings to be held among all the nuclear powers to discuss issues of common concern," the statement said.
Meanwhile, the Indian and Pakistani foreign ministers are to hold their first meeting today in Beijing.