New Delhi: Top Defence officials from India and Pakistan today (Aug 5, 2004) grappled over the question of de-militarising the Siachen Glacier picking up from the ceasefire agreed to between the two sides on the world's highest battlefield last year-end as part of the peace process.

Meeting after a gap of seven years, the two sides resumed Defence Secretary-level talks focussed on military de-escalation on the Glacier and other confidence building measures.

There was no official word on the talks, which will conclude tomorrow, possibly with a joint statement.

Visiting Pakistani Defence Secretary Lt Gen (Retired) Hamid Nawaz Khan, who is leading a 12-member high-powered delegation, first held an hour long one-to-one meeting with his Indian counterpart Ajai Vikram Singh, before both sides began the delegation-level talks. Khan also called on National Security Adviser J N Dixit.

The Pakistani delegation later called on Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee for over 45 minutes. Mukherjee will host a dinner in their honour.

"The talks started this morning and they are scheduled to continue tomorrow," External Affairs Ministry spokesman told reporters.

Asked whether the two sides would come out with a joint statement, he was non-committal.

Though both sides were tight-lipped about the nature and agenda of talks, Khan said that Islamabad had a "positive and open" mind on the Siachen issue.

While New Delhi has been stressing that any de-militarisation of the Glacier should recognise the demarcations of the existing actual ground positions, Islamabad wants the pre-1972 position be recognised.

When the LoC (Line of Control) in J and K was demarcated between the two countries under the 1972 Simla Agreement, it concluded at Point NJ9842 just ahead of the Kargil area.

India's contention is that the line runs south from this point to the Glaciers, the word used in the Simla Agreement while Pakistan says the LoC runs north to the Karakoram Pass.

The Pakistani delegation includes Jalil Abbas Jilani, Director General (South Asia) in the Pakistan Foreign Ministry, Maj Gen Raza Mohd Khan, Director General Operations and Planning in Pakistan Army General Headquarters, Maj Gen Mohd Yusuf, Director General Military Operations, Maj Gen Jamal Gul Rahim Afiridi, Rear Admiral Ahsalul Haq Chowdhary, Additional Secretary Defence and Aziz Ahmed Khan, Pakistan High Commissioner in India.

Besides the Defence Secretary Indian team includes Arun Singh, Joint Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs, P Nag, Surveyor General, Shiv Shankar Menon, Indian High Commissioner in Islamabad, Lt Gen A S Bhaiya, Director General Military Operations, Bimal Julka and Gautam Mukhopadhyaya, both Joint Secretaries in the Defence Ministry and Maj Gen J S Lidder, Additional DGMO.

The discussion forms part of the ongoing composite dialogue process between New Delhi and Islamabad.