The Hindu : Front Page : Talks with Pakistan to begin in May

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Thursday, Apr 10, 2008
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Talks with Pakistan to begin in May

Sandeep Dikshit

Conducive atmosphere prevails

Pranab, Menon to meet their counterparts
PM hopes ties will evolve into the “best ever”

NEW DELHI: With the new government in Islamabad declaring its intention to resolve all outstanding disputes through dialogue, India has decided to resume the discussions, which were stalled for several months due to political uncertainty.

Foreign Secretary Shiv Shankar Menon will engage with his counterpart, Riaz Mohammad Khan, in Pakistan on May 20 to wind up the fourth round of composite dialogue.

A day later, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee will meet his counterpart, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, in Islamabad to chart out the road ahead and review the progress made so far.

Setting the tone

The stage for resumption of talks was set earlier this month when Mr. Mukherjee called up Mr. Qureshi to congratulate him on his appointment and both agreed to resume the meetings at an earlier date under the composite dialogue framework.

Earlier, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh telephoned the newly elected Pakistan Prime Minister, Yousuf Raza Gillani, and expressed the hope that bilateral ties would evolve into the “best ever,” putting the “past behind.”

India had been studying the political situation in Pakistan for the last six months, with Mr. Mukherjee admitting in December that both sides could not carry out “normal work due to the circumstances prevailing there.”

The Minister pointed out that India was willing to wait until a new government was in place.

Started in 2004, the composite dialogue covers eight subjects ranging from the territorial and water-related disputes over Siachen, Sir Creek, Kashmir and the Wullar Barrage to checking terrorism and drug trafficking, promoting economic and commercial cooperation and friendly exchanges in several fields.

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