The Pakistani Government has announced it is postponing a regional summit due to be held in Islamabad next month, amid recriminations with neighbouring India.

A Pakistani Foreign Ministry statement said that the seven-nation South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation (Saarc) had been put off indefinitely because India had refused to confirm whether or not it would attend.

Every meaningful proposal was being systematically sabotaged by Pakistan

Indian foreign ministry spokesman

"In view of the little time left to make proper preparations and in the face of the continued Indian refusal to confirm its participation, the Government of Pakistan is regrettably left with no alternative...," the statement said.

However, an Indian Foreign Ministry spokesman, Navtej Sarna, blamed Pakistan for coming in the way of making "substantive progress" in crucial regional issues such as trade and economy.

Sabotaged

He said: "India has always been committed to Saarc and its process, and it was precisely due to our commitment that we had suggested that substantive progress should take place on various trade and economic issues being discussed."

Mr Sarna added: "Every meaningful proposal was being systematically sabotaged by Pakistan."

But a Pakistani spokesman said it was the Indian Government who were acting deviously to "sabotage" the conference.

India had said previously it wanted a climate of reconciliation before Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee could travel to the summit.

Disagreements

The two countries are still at loggerheads over the disputed territory of Kashmir, with India saying Pakistan is not doing enough to curb the activities of militant groups fighting Indian rule.

The Pakistani foreign ministry spokesman said only India and Bhutan were to still to give their consent and Delhi had raised objections on the specific dates for the summit meeting.

He said India has also placed preconditions such as linking its participation to the ending of cross-border terrorism - which he said was not acceptable.

However, he described the postponement as a mere hiccup and said it certainly does not mean the South Asian grouping is dead.

Member countries

India Pakistan Sri Lanka Maldives Bangladesh Bhutan Nepal

Saarc, which was founded in 1985, has long been weakened by the disagreements between its two largest members.

The last Saarc summit was in Kathmandu in January 2002, at which President Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan visibly embarrassed Vajpayee by reaching for his hand on the podium and offering "friendship."

India has continued to refuse to hold any bilateral talks with Pakistan since a failed summit between the two leaders in July 2001 in the Indian city of Agra.