New Delhi: Is India confused on how to proceed with Pakistan? In September, the Indian and Pakistani foreign ministers are supposed to meet in New York, and ahead of that, the foreign secretaries were expected to hold talks. But India has still not set a date.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh took the flak for the joint statement that followed a handshake at Sharm El-Sheikh, and since that July meeting, the government's Pakistan policy stands at crossroads, not sure which direction to take.
India has still not set dates for the two foreign secretaries to meet, which is expected as a precursor to talks between the two foreign ministers on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in September, and the road ahead looks shaky.
Sources in the Foreign Ministry say that with no real progress on terror, talks even at the foreign secretary level won't serve a purpose.
Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mohammad Qureshi has said the Indian Foreign Secretary has been invited to Islamabad for talks, but New Delhi has refused to even confirm or deny the invite exists.
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister has just said the atmosphere for a composite dialogue is not conducive. Sources say the Congress doesn't want to risk any major move with Pakistan until after the Maharashtra elections, though some officials insist the PMO is planning something significant on the Indo-Pak front.
Sources say this confusion stems from the fact that the Prime Minister himself is driving foreign policy, particularly on Pakistan. So many officials, even in the MEA, are not entirely in the loop.