NEW DELHI (Sputnik) — The director generals of military operations (DGMO) of the Indian and Pakistani armies held talks amid increasing border tensions, Indian Army spokesman Col. Aman Anand said Friday in a statement.
On Monday, Indian and Pakistani troops exchanged fire across the Line of Control in the disputed region of Jammu and Kashmir, according to local police officials.
"DGMO level talks on behest of Pak DGMO was held on 22 Sep 17," Anand said.
The Pakistani side raised the matter of Pakistani civilians being targeted in the area of the Jammu Sector.
"Indian DGMO in response highlighted that all ceasefire violations in the Jammu Sector were initiated by Pak Rangers, and the BSF [Border Security Force] troops deployed only responded appropriately to them. It was also emphasized that no targeted firing on civilians was carried out by their own troops. Apart from these, firing by BSF troops was initiated onto Armed intruders attempting to infiltrate from close proximity Pak posts along the Amritsar Border," Anand stressed.
The Indian side reaffirmed that appropriate retaliation would be carried out in response to any incident leading to casualties among troops, at the same time reiterating its dedication to peace and tranquility along the contact line, given the Pakistani side took reciprocal efforts.
"DGMO also put across emphatically that the trend of infiltration along the LC [line of control] continued with active support of Pak forward posts impacting peace and tranquility along the LC and also the internal security situation. This was evident from continued attempts of sniping and targeting of our troops undertaken through cross-border actions duly supported by Pak Army troops," Anand also said.
India and Pakistan have repeatedly clashed over border disputes in the Kashmir and Punjab regions, having fought several wars over the territories since independence in 1947. Some 111 to 151 people were killed in more recent skirmishes in 2014 and 2015. Starting in mid-2016, Islamic separatists have fought Indian security forces in Kashmir, leading to at least 92 deaths, 19,000 injuries, and over 8,500 arrests. India claims that Pakistan is funding the separatists to weaken India's hold on the valuable mountainous region.
