India hits back at Pakistan: Vacate Pok

TIL Desk/National/New Delhi-The war of words between India and Pakistan intensified on Thursday with Delhi demanding that Islamabad address “more pressing” issues related to cross-border terrorism and Pakistan saying that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had “crossed a red line” by talking of Balochistan during his August 15 speech.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said the latest offer of dialogue on Kashmir from Pakistan could progress only if Islamabad stopped the export of terror that hit Kashmir, as well as Mumbai on 26/11, and demanded the “earliest possible vacation of PoK [Pakistan-occupied Kashmir].”

Releasing the contents of the letter that Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar wrote to his Pakistan counterpart Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry on August 16, the MEA demanded the “cessation of cross-border terrorism”, the “closing down of terrorist camps”, and denial of “safe havens for terrorists.” The terror-specific demands came a day after India rejected Pakistan’s proposal for “Kashmir dispute-specific talks” and demanded that the proposed Foreign Secretary talks focus on “cross-border terrorism.”