Former spy chief A.S. Dulat asked the Indian government on Monday to invite Pakistan’s Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa to kick-start the dialog process between the two nations.
Speaking to NDTV together with former ISI chief Lt Gen Asad Durrani ahead of the release of their joint book — The Spy Chronicles: RAW, ISI and the Illusion of Peace — Mr Dulat said there was a new inflection in diplomatic and strategic fields across the world. “Who could have thought a few days ago that President Donald Trump would be talking to the North Korean leader? We should also think out of the box, as Dr Manmohan Singh used to say. Roll out the red carpet and invite Gen Bajwa, and see what happens.”
The Spy Chronicles
Addressing NDTV together with previous ISI chief Lt Gen Asad Durrani in front of the arrival of their joint book — The Spy Chronicles: RAW, ISI and the Illusion of Peace — Mr Dulat said there was a new modulation in diplomatic and strategic fields over the world. “Who could have thought a couple of days back that President Donald Trump would converse with the North Korean leader? We should also think likewise, as Dr Manmohan Singh used to say. Present a royal welcome and welcome Gen Bajwa, and see what happens.”
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Both authors described people-to-people contacts as a low hanging fruit that could be plucked easily, including easing of visas and resumption of cricket ties.
Gen Durrani, speaking from his home in Pakistan, said he believed the meeting between former prime ministers Manmohan Singh and Yousuf Raza Gilani in Sharm el Sheikh had produced a path-breaking agreement, which bureaucracies on both sides had trashed. “The agreement to have a joint anti-terror mechanism would have been a great achievement for both. Alas, that was not to be.”
