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India, Pakistan conclude dialogue on Sir Creek issue

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

New Delhi, May 26, IRNA
India-Pak-Talks
Indian and Pakistani officials concluded talks on their boundary dispute over the Sir Creek Friday even as the two neighbors push forward a slow moving peace process aimed at ending nearly six decades of hostility.

While concluding the two-day official-level talks here, India and Pakistan agreed to conduct a joint survey of the Sir Creek area.

The survey will be conducted both in Creek and Sir soon and modalities will be worked out by the technical experts of the two countries, officials said.

The two sides have been able to narrow down differences, said Surveyor General Maj Gen Gopal Rao, who led the Indian side at the two -day talks to resolve boundary dispute in Sir Creek area.

Pakistani delegation leader Admiral Ahsan-ul-Haq Chaudhri, Additional Secretary in the Defence Ministry, said the two countries had made progress.

This is the eighth round of talks between New Delhi and Islamabad since 1969 on the demarcation dispute.

Sir Creek is a small strip of marshy land along the Rann of Kutch, bordering Gujarat in India and Sindh in Pakistan. Both countries are keen to acquire the region, said to be rich in oil and natural gas.

India claims that the boundary should lie in the middle of the 100 km estuary, basing its claim on accepted practice as well as pillars built down the middle of part of the channel during British colonial rule.

Pakistan says the border should lie on the southeastern bank of the creek, basing its claim on a line shown on a map drawn up by the British governor of then Bombay in the early 20th century.

The dispute has prevented the two sides agreeing on their maritime boundaries and hampered offshore exploration in an area thought to hold oil and gas deposits.

Last year, both India and Pakistan had agreed to conduct a joint survey of the area and to consider options for the delimitation of the maritime boundary.

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