In a significant breakthrough after months of cross-border hostilities and firing duels, India and Pakistan on Tuesday agreed to restore peace along the Line of Control (LoC) and International Border (IB) in Jammu and Kashmir by agreeing to honour the ceasefire pact of November 2003.
Both the sides “mutually agreed” to undertake “sincere measures” to improve the existing situation along the Line of Control (LoC) and Working Boundary (WB) and ensuring peace and avoidance of hardships to the civilians along the borders after reviewing the situation, a press release of the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), media wing of the Pakistan armed forces, said.
Indian director-general of military operations Lt General Anil Chauhan and his Pakistani counterpart Major General Sahir Shamshad Mirza decided to “fully implement the 2003 ceasefire understanding in letter and spirit” after the latter sought “a special hotline talk” at 6 pm on Tuesday.
According to a source, the two also agreed that in case of any issue, restraint will be exercised and the matter will be resolved through utilisation of existing mechanisms of hotline contacts and border flag meetings at local commander’s level.
The development comes after ceasefire violations (CFVs) in just the first five months of 2018 broke all annual records since 2003, with the two armies regularly using light artillery guns, anti-tank guided missiles and heavy mortars to target each other with civilians getting caught in the middle.
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