With back-channel diplomacy having failed, there is much speculation about what the Director General Military Operations (dgmo) of India has been saying to his counterpart in Pakistan in the past few weeks.
Top sources in army headquarters told Outlook that last Tuesday's phone call was largely directed at ensuring that there would be no use of nuclear weapons by either side. According to the source, the nuclear issue was the focus of the discussions. It is also believed that the two generals talked about not allowing the Kargil battle to escalate. However, the generals did not talk peace. "There was no talk of withdrawal or a ceasefire," a top source said.
The next telephonic contact between the two dgmos could be significant. According to sources, the prime minister has called a meeting of top army officials following which a message-contouring the broad de-escalation-could perhaps be conveyed to Pakistan.
Army sources point out that even if a secret deal-including a safe passage-is to be worked out, then the dgmos of the two countries would have to be brought in at some stage.