Exclusive: Pakistan ready for unconditional talks with India. Will PM Narendra Modi accept the offer?
Speaking exclusively to Aaj Tak, Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit said that the schedule of Pakistan's foreign affairs advisor Sartaj Aziz is not cast in stone and if there was an offer for talks from the host nation, then it would be accepted by Pakistan.
Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit today said the Nawaz Sharif government is ready for a dialogue with India on the sidelines of the Heart of Asia conference in Amritsar next week.
Speaking exclusively to Aaj Tak, Basit said that the schedule of Pakistan's foreign affairs advisor Sartaj Aziz is not cast in stone and if there was an offer for talks from the host nation, then it would be accepted by Pakistan.
Calling for a resumption of the stalled dialogue process between India and Pakistan, Basit said, "We can delay talks for months or even for years. But ultimately, a solution to the problems between India and Pakistan can only come through dialogue, and therefore, both nations must sit and discuss all the issues that confront them."
'Escalation along LoC not in Pakistan's interest'
At a time when heavy guns have been booming along the India-Pakistan border, Basit called for an end to hostilities and for the 2003 LoC ceasefire to be turned into a formal agreement.
HIGHLIGHTS
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Nawaz Sharif government ready for talks with India, said Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit
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Basit said the 2003 LoC ceasefire can be turned into a formal agreement
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Pakistan's Sartaj Aziz scheduled to be in India for Heart of Asia conference on December 3-4
"Escalation along the Line of Control is not in Pakistan's interest. The Pakistan army is heavily deployed along the country's western borders as part of the Operation Zarb-e-Azb and it is wrong to say that the escalation is being fuelled by Pakistan. We would like that hostilities along the Line of Control come to an end and that the 2003 ceasefire understanding is turned into a formal agreement between India and Pakistan," he said.
'Democracy in Pakistan has matured'
The Pakistani High Commissioner also said that the uneventful transition from one army chief to another showed a strengthening of democracy in the country. "Pakistan's democracy has matured in a way that the era of military coups is over. An equilibrium has been set. The voice of the people and democracy is becoming stronger. There's no question of a military coup in the future," Basit said.
The Pakistan government's overtures come days ahead of the Heart of Asia dialogue to be held in Amritsar on December 3-4. So far, Sartaj Aziz is scheduled to land on the morning of December 4 and leave the same day.
But the Pakistani High Commissioner has given enough indications to suggest that there could be a window of opportunity for the two countries to resume the bilateral dialogue process, provided the Modi government is interested in doing so. The diplomatic ball is now in India's court. Will PM Modi accept?
http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/exclusive-pakistan-ready-for-talks-with-india/1/821370.html
Pakistan willing to hold talks with India: Abdul Basit
https://www.geo.tv/latest/121852-Pakistan-willing-to-hold-talks-with-India-Abdul-Basit