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A single phrase brought the house down

Josy Joseph in Agra

A draft declaration being circulated by Pakistani journalists to media personnel assembled outside the Jaypee Palace Hotel, where President Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan has gone to say goodbye to Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, suggests that the talks broke down over a single phrase: 'cross-border'.

The Pakistani journalists said settlement of the Kashmir dispute would pave the way for normalization of relations between the two countries.

The Pakistani draft declaration also suggested an annual summit between the two heads of state/government and a biennial meeting of the foreign ministers to tackle three identified issues:

1. Peace, security and confidence-building measures
2. Kashmir
3. Narcotics and terrorism.

   The Pakistani journalists said the dispute arose because India insisted it should be "cross-border terrorism" and not just terrorism.

   But this is only a speculative draft which Pakistani journalists are circulating. There was no confirmation from the Indian side of these claims.

   Indo-Pak Summit 2001: The Complete Coverage

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