ISLAMABAD, Aug 3: A nine-member Pakistan delegation headed by Mr Tariq Osman Hyder, Additional Foreign Secretary UN, will leave Thursday for back to back talks on nuclear and conventional confidence building measures (CBMs) with India in New Delhi. The two-day nuclear talks begin on Friday and will be followed by talks on conventional CBMs after a day’s break on Monday.

This will be the third round of talks on the nuclear issue between the two countries since the resumption of the composite dialogue framework in 2004, and the second on conventional CBMs. The first round of nuclear talks was in Delhi in June 2004 and the second in Islamabad in December 2004 which were followed by talks on conventional CBMs.

Pakistan team comprises senior foreign ministry officials, including director-general South Asia Division Syed Ibne Abbas, director and deputy director Disarmament Division. Director Strategic Plans Division Brig Salik, additional director Khalid Banuri and representative of the GHQ are also members of the delegation.

The Indian delegation will be led by Additional Secretary International Organisations at the Ministry of External Affairs. On top of the agenda of nuclear talks, aimed at reducing the risk of accidental war and promoting strategic stability, will be the draft agreement on pre-notification of flight-testing missiles. The two sides could not reach an understanding on it in the last round of talks.

Informed sources said chances of it being finalized seem better now. However, when Dawn talked to some members of the Pakistan delegation on Thursday they refused to speculate, saying it could go anyway.

Defence experts say if firmed up it would be a very useful measure and avert apprehensions particularly when relations between the two nuclear-armed neighbours get tense. They underline the need for Pakistan and India to have an effective and reliable channel of communication to ensure there was no accidental or unauthorized launch.

The operationalization of dedicated hotlines between the foreign secretaries of the two countries and upgradation of hotline between the DGMOs of the two countries would figure in the talks as would Pakistan’s proposal on strategic restraint regime (SRR), officials here said.

The SRR incorporates three interlinked elements of nuclear and missile restraint, conflict resolution and conventional balance. The general framework of the talks which would include strategic stability, crisis management, confidence building and risk reduction.

Some headway on other technical issues such as improving coordination and communication measures, prevention of incidents at sea and evolving nuclear risk reduction mechanism is also expected. Movement on monitoring and verification mechanisms to review and ensure effective implementation of the nuclear CBMs is also likely.