They Sat Together, They Talked and then They Departed

They Sat Together, They Talked and then They Departed On July 14, 2001, the then Pakistan President General Parvez Musharraf came to New Delhi from Islamabad. He had five long sessions with the then Prime Minister of India, Atal Bihari Vajpayee. The main objective of these meetings was to explore the possibilities of a resolution to the Kashmir issue. However, the talks failed, and two days later, on the night of July 16, 2001, Musharraf returned to Islamabad. What was the reason for the failure of these high level talks? The basic reason according to the information we have was that the Indian Prime Minister wanted to maintain the political and geographical status quo that existed at that time in Jammu and Kashmir, and to have normal relations restored in all other matters between the two countries, in order that the journey towards progress, having halted for so long, might be set in motion once again. But probably President Pervez Musharraf insisted that Kashmir issue be addressed in favour of Pakistan, —to the effect that the whole of Kashmir belonged to Pakistan—and only then would he be willing to establish normal relations with India. The Indian Prime Minister did not accept this suggestion and then, naturally, the talks broke down. When Parvez Musharraf arrived in India he made such statements as suggested that he was willing to enter into an agreement through negotiation with India on Kashmir. For instance, in his speech at the Rashtrapati Bhawan in New Delhi he said that a military solution to the Kashmir problem was not possible. Similarly, at the Agra press conference, he spoke about the acceptance of reality. He also said