Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri on Monday said the government has no involvement with retired diplomats and military officials participating in overseas discussions on India-Pakistan ties in their personal capacities and that New Delhi does not even take cognisance of such deliberations.
Misri’s remarks to the media at Victoria in Seychelles came in the wake of reports that Indian and Pakistani experts comprising retired military officials, diplomats and politicians participated in Track 2 discussions on the sidelines of a regional security conference in Colombo last week.
“Dozens of such events take place in dozens of places around the world on a whole variety of subjects. There’s nothing new, nothing special about these events," he said.
“As far as we are concerned, these are private events organised by private parties. There is nothing official about them," he said while responding to a media query.
“Obviously, I cannot speak for the government of Pakistan, but as far as India is concerned, there is no official participation, no official support or involvement, in these visits.
“It should be obvious, therefore, that anybody from India who is participating in these events, whether they are retired diplomats, retired military officials or members of civil society, they speak for themselves and they represent their own point of view," Misri said.
The Foreign Secretary said India did not take any cognisance of these events.
“They do not and cannot in any way represent the view of the Government of India. So that is the other important thing to keep in mind," he said.
“We really take no cognisance of these events. They really don’t hold much value, as far as we are concerned," Misri added.
