Islamabad:
Pakistan Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar late on Wednesday night suggested that she and her Indian counterpart Salman Khurshid hold talks to defuse the tension building between the neighbours over ceasefire violations along the Line of Control (LoC).
"Instead of issuing belligerent statements by the military and political leaders from across the border and ratcheting up tension, it is advisable for the two countries to discuss all concerns related to the LoC with a view to reinforcing respect for the ceasefire, may be at the level of the foreign ministers," Ms Khar said in a statement. (
Read full statement)
"Rhetoric and ratcheting up of tensions is certainly counter-productive," she said.
The remarks came as India and Pakistan agreed to de-escalate the situation along LoC and the Director General of Military Operations of the two countries spoke to each other.
In New York yesterday, Ms Khar had accused India of "war mongering" after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said there "cannot be business as usual" with Pakistan following the brutal killing of the two Indian soldiers, Lance Naik Hemraj Singh and Lance Naik Sudhakar Singh.
A string of violations of the ceasefire along the 742-km LoC over the past 10 days have left two Indian soldiers dead. Pakistan says three of its soldiers have been killed by Indian troops.
Ms Khar said Pakistan and India were important countries of South Asia and should "demonstrate requisite responsibility for ensuring peace by addressing all concerns through dialogue".
Pakistan, she said, was "saddened and disappointed at the continued negative statements emanating from India, both from the media as well as certain Indian leaders".
She said Islamabad had observed "deliberate self-restraint" in its public statements on India. "We have invested hugely in the dialogue process and have worked energetically to keep the dialogue process moving forward in a sustained and constructive manner. Pakistan has gone out of the way to build a constructive relationship with India," she said.