Indo-Pak foreign secretaries to meet on February 6 in Bhutan

The foreign secretaries of India and Pakistan will meet on the sidelines of an upcoming SAARC standing committee meeting in Bhutan to explore ways to take forward the stalled peace process between the two neighbours.

The decision regarding Pakistani foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi’s visit to India would be taken after looking at the outcome of the secretaries’ meeting, Pakistani foreign office spokesman Abdul Basit has been quoted as saying by the Pakistani media on Sunday.

“The SAARC standing committee meeting is scheduled to take place in Thimphu on February 6 and 7,” Basit said on Saturday.

“Pakistan has always been in favour of composite dialogue with India because we believe it is the only way to resolve the core dispute of Kashmir and other bilateral issues,” he said.

He said external affairs minister SM Krishna had invited Qureshi to India during his Pakistan visit in July. “If the foreign secretaries succeed to evolve a comprehensive agenda for the resumption of composite dialogue, the foreign minister will definitely visit India,” Basit said.