India's foreign secretary arrived in Pakistan on Tuesday to resume reconciliatory talks between the two nations, despite ongoing tensions.

Talks had been suspended after a diplomatic row over the disputed Kashmir region, which is divided between Pakistan and India, and border skirmishes between the two nations.

The visit of India's Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar follows Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent phone call to his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif assuring him of the resumption of talks.

India suspended secretary-level talks with Islamabad last year after the Pakistani High Commissioner to New Delhi held a meeting with pro-independence Kashmiri leaders.

The resumption of talks is seen as the outcome of back-door diplomacy, instigated mainly by the United States.

“India has agreed to restore talks at an international pressure. Therefore, we should not expect any break-through from these talks,” said Sajjad Mir, a Lahore-based political analyst.

“Let’s take these talks as talks, rather than a breakthrough event as much is there to settle down between the two countries.”

The two nuclear rivals have been locked in several disputes over land and sea boundaries since Pakistan was created after the end of British rule and the partition of India in 1947.
India and Pakistan have fought three wars, with two of them over the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir.

PHOTO CAPTION

Pakistani rangers (wearing black uniforms) and Indian Border Security Force (BSF) officers lower their national flags during a daily parade at the Pakistan-India joint check-post at Wagah border, near Lahore November 3, 2014.

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