Amid rising tensions in Indo-Pak ties after the Mumbai attacks, a number of world leaders, including British Foreign Secretary David Miliband and German Chancellor Angela Markel, held consultations with the Pakistani leadership to prevent the escalation of the crisis.
Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Monday dismissed a report that the Inter-Services Intelligence agency is funding, training and guiding the Taliban in Afghanistan as "rubbish", saying Talibanisation is not good for both countries.
The kind of blanket immunity Washington is pressing for (US official Raymond) Davis is not endorsed by the official record of the Foreign Ministry," said Qureshi, who declined to join Pakistan's new cabinet last week after he was not reallocated the foreign affairs portfolio.
India and Pakistan have agreed to resume dialogue on 'all issues' and Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi will visit New Delhi by July to review progress in the parleys.Unveiling the road-map for resumption of a comprehensive dialogue with Pakistan, India on Thursday announced that the home secretaries of the two countries will hold talks on counter-terrorism, including progress in the 26/11 trial in Rawalpindi court, ahead of Qureshi's visit in July.
Pakistan is looking forward to a sustained and result-oriented engagement with India on the basis of "sovereign equality and mutual respect", Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said on Wednesday.
Pakistan said on Thursday it will adopt a "positive and constructive" approach to its upcoming talks with India with a view to resolving all outstanding issues, including the Kashmir problem, on the basis of sovereign equality and mutual respect.
Notwithstanding India's insistence on action against Jamaat-ud-Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed, Pakistan was non-committal on action against the mastermind of Mumbai attacks and several other terror strikes in India. "Same old beaten track," said Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi when asked for his response to India's repeated demand that action should be taken against Saeed in connection with Mumbai attacks.
Pakistan expressed hope on Tuesday night that the issue of an Indian woman diplomat being arrested on charges of spying for the Inter-Services-Intelligence would not overshadow the expected meeting between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani in Thimphu.
Khan was arrested on Tuesday in the case, sparking massive country-wide protests by his supporters.
Pakistan is bracing for another day of violence that broke out in many cities after the arrest of former prime minister Imran Khan for alleged corruption with the leaders of his party announcing a countrywide strike on Wednesday to protest against the fascist government.
All of 34, Hina Khar Rabbani, Pakistan's first woman and youngest foreign minister, was thrust into the spotlight as she landed in New Delhi on Tuesday.
Special US Representative for Pakistan and Afghanistan Richard Holbrooke on Tuesday said that the Obama administration would soon announce a range of actions for Pakistan in the field of water, energy and security.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi would co-chair the first US-Pak Strategic Dialogue to be held in Washington on March 24.
Pakistan wants to establish friendly relations with all its neighbours, including India, though New Delhi needs to change its policies towards Islamabad, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said on Sunday.
"What bewilders me is the lack of realisation that durable peace in South Asia will remain elusive without a just solution of Jammu and Kashmir dispute," Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said at an Asia Society meeting in New York on Friday.
Both ministers on Thursday greeted each other warmly and made inquiries about their stay in New York so far, Indian envoy to the UN Hardeep Singh Puri said. Krishna then asked Qureshi about the flood situation in Pakistan and how the relief efforts were coming along. Qureshi, in turn, spoke about the steps his government was taking and also thanked India for its aid of USD 20 million routed through the UN
"Do we control children and women in Srinagar and other parts of Kashmir so that they will come out and agitate? No we can't do that," Pakistan Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi said.
Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Tuesday criticised the 'use of blatant violence' by security forces in Kashmir. In a statement issued by the Foreign Office, Qureshi referred to the ongoing situation in Jammu and Kashmir and said the 'violence by Indian security forces' had resulted in the 'loss of scores of innocent lives since June'. Qureshi's comments came a day after 17 people, including a policeman, were killed and over 70 injured in violence.
India and Israel are the only two countries whose aid workers will not be granted special visas by Pakistan to join relief efforts for the millions of people affected by the country's worst floods.
India on Friday welcomed Pakistan's decision to accept its $5 million aid offer for flood relief in the country and said it was willing to provide more assistance. Pakistan's decision to accept the aid came nearly a week after the offer was made by External Affairs Minister S M Krishna to his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mahmood Qureshi last Friday. "We welcome the decision of Pakistan to accept the aid offer," external affairs ministry spokesman Vishnu Prakash said.
Responding to External Affairs Minister S M Krishna's invitation to visit India, Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has made it clear that he would accept it if the talks are to be "result-oriented", covering all issues of importance, including Kashmir. He stressed the need for "positive and constructive approach" after his July 15 talks with Krishna ended on a bitter note, particularly on Kashmir and terrorism emanating from Pakistan.
External Affairs Minister S M Krishna had conveyed the offer of aid to his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mahmood Qureshi during a telephone conversation on Friday.
With India's patience running out, External Affairs Minister S M Krishna on Thursday asked his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mahmood Qureshi about the progress into the Mumbai terror attacks case and sought a quicker trial."I made enquiries about the progress they (Pakistan) have made about bringing to justice those who were responsible for the attack in Mumbai," said Krishna about his meeting with Qureshi in Kabul.
Pakistan has said it is ready to take action against Jamaat-ud Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed but added that India should give 'concrete evidence' that stands 'legal scrutiny' and holds him responsible for the Mumbai terror attacks. Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi insisted that his country was committed to bringing the perpetrators of 26/11 to justice but could not give any specific time-frame for conclusion of the trial in the case as the judiciary acted independently
Notwithstanding the lack of progress in July 15 talks, Pakistan has said it is ready to walk the "extra mile" as it wants to "move forward" in building relations with India but insisted that the two countries need to be "mutually accommodative". Pressing for a "comprehensive and sustained" engagement, Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi maintained that Kashmir issue would have to be the part of any discussions and "selective" approach would not be helpful.
Newly-elected Bharatiya Janata Party member Ram Jethmalani surprised the Rajya Sabha on Thursday when he praised External Affairs Minister S M Krishna for showing "dignity" in the face of critical remarks of his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mahmood Qureshi about Home Secretary G K Pillai at a joint press conference last month.
Pakistan on Wednesday accused India of not responding positively to its efforts to restart the dialogue process and contended that it would go the "extra mile" if New Delhi takes steps in this regard.
Noting that Pakistan had done nothing on the 26/11 case, former National Security Adviser Brajesh Mishra on Tuesday said the government had made a "serious mistake" by holding talks and these were "bound to fail".
Asserting that India will not get into a slanging match with Islamabad, the sources said that the roadmap for talks will be decided in the time to come.
Upping the ante, Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has said he is unwilling to travel to New Delhi for talks unless India is prepared to hold a "meaningful, constructive and result-oriented" dialogue to resolve outstanding issues.
After making carping comments on his talks with S M Krishna, Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has said he never stated that his Indian counterpart was on the phone with New Delhi during their parleys on Thursday.
Pakistan appears to have piped down on Saturday after two days of acrimony with India with its leaders saying it wanted continuation of the bilateral dialogue and is serious about normalisation of Indo-Pak ties.
'There are difficulties and we need to find a way to handle them,' Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said, adding 'we are ready to engage, we are ready to negotiate any time, anywhere and we are not in a hurry. We will wait till they are ready.'
Pakistan's leading newspapers have lamented that the Indo-Pak foreign ministerial-level talks have produced nothing but a promise for more talks.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Friday regretted that Home Secretary G K Pillai was not 'defended' by External Affairs Minister S M Krishna when he was 'openly castigated' by Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi for his remarks that the Inter Services Intelligence had coordinated the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks.
India [ Images ] secured an assurance from Pakistan on Thursday that it would act on the leads given by Pakistani-American terrorist David Headley to unravel the conspiracy behind the Mumbai terror attacks even as the two countries agreed to continue their dialogue.
The major thrust of the meeting is on anti-India terrorism that continues to emanate from Pakistan.
'If the ministers spend their time throwing Indian dossiers on terrorism and Pakistani dossiers on Kashmir and river waters at each other, they will miss an opportunity for creating a possible and much-needed turning point in Indo-Pakistan relations.'
The Pakistan government has trashed former president Pervez Musharraf's four-point formula to resolve Kashmir issue, saying it was "his thinking" which did not have the endorsement of Pakistan Parliament or Cabinet and suggested a fresh approach to address the vexed problem.
"We are opposed to nuclear proliferation as well as an arms race in the region," he said, adding that Pakistan believes the launch of the Indian nuclear-powered submarine will affect strategic stability.
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