Weekly briefing: No official word on Indian PM’s visit, says FO

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Thursday welcomed the statement attributed to India’s External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid on New Delhi’s willingness to resume composite dialogue. “We have always said that Pakistan and India need to resume the dialogue process and have meaningful, result-oriented discussions on all the disputes and issues, particularly Kashmir. So we welcome that statement,” Foreign Office Spokesperson Tasnim Aslam said in her weekly press briefing. However, she said there is no ‘official indication’ that India’s prime minister could visit Pakistan in March, as reported in a section of the Indian media. “No we have no official indication about the visit. We have seen the media reports and we know as much as you do,” she told reporters when asked about the reports. On the other hand, she confirmed the Indian commerce minister will undertake a two-day visit of Pakistan starting February 16. The trip, she said, will coincide with an India Trade Show in Lahore. Aslam said a statement by the chief minister of Indian-administered Kashmir that Pakistan and India were once very close to resolving the Kashmir issue ‘held no credence’. Cross-LoC trade suspension The FO spokesperson said allegations that narcotics were recovered from a truck travelling from Azad Jammu and Kashmir to Indian-administer Kashmir need to be thoroughly investigated. “Both sides should discuss ways to proceed further and make some mechanism that prevent such incidents from occurring in future.” Pak-US ties Aslam termed the recent speech by US President Barack Obama, where he said he has imposed prudent limits on the use of drone attacks, an acknowledgement of Pakistan’s point of view. She said no discussion about cross border terrorism took place during the recent round of strategic dialogue between Washington and Islamabad. However, she said the issue remains a matter of concern between the two countries. The spokesperson said the joint communiqué issued after the dialogue mainly emphasised enhancing economic cooperation between the two countries. Published in The Express Tribune, January 31st, 2014.