Indo-Pak next Siachen talks on June 11-12

Islamabad: India and Pakistan will hold their next round of talks on the military standoff on Siachen glacier in Islamabad during June 11-12 against the backdrop of renewed calls from the Pakistani civil and military leadership for the demilitarisation of the world's highest battlefield.

"Pakistan and India will hold talks on the Siachen issue on June 11-12 at Islamabad," Foreign Office spokesman Moazzam Khan said in a brief statement on Thursday evening. He, however, did not give details.

The last round of talks on Siachen was held in Delhi by the Defence Secretaries of the two countries almost a year ago.

The talks will be help against the backdrop of renewed calls from the Pakistani leadership for demilitarisation of Siachen.

The announcement by Khan came shortly after diplomatic sources said that Pakistan had asked India to reschedule talks on the Sir Creek border dispute which were to be held in New Delhi next week.

The Pakistani side has sought fresh dates later in May or in June for talks on the Sir Creek issue, sources said.

They said fresh dates would be decided through diplomatic consultations. The reasons for Pakistan's decision could not immediately be ascertained.

Foreign Office spokesman Moazzam Khan had recently announced that officials of the two countries would meet in New Delhi during May 14-16 to discuss the Sir Creek issue.

Some reports have suggested that Islamabad wants to assess progress on the Siachen issue before holding talks on Sir Creek.

Representatives from Pakistan's powerful military play a key role in talks on both Sir Creek and Siachen.

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