Will meet Pranab to bolster Indo-Pak tie
Pakisan foreign minister Mehmood Kasuri is in the Capital on a private visit to attend friend Mani Shankar Aiyer's daughter's wedding.
In what is being regarded a "wedding diplomacy", Kasuri is being invited for a formal lunch at Hyderabad House by external affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee. It is a courtesy being extended to a visiting foreign minister and nothing more, said officials in New Delhi. "After all, we finished an exhaustive round of talks at the foreign secretary level and the third round is scheduled to begin in February. There is nothing much to be done now," said an official.
But the meeting in Hyderabad House will certainly not be a private tete-a-tete. The focus will be on India-Pakistan relations. The fact that Pakistan's senior official, in charge of South Asia is accompanying Kasuri, it is a clear indication that Pakistan hopes for a fruitful discussion on various issues. It will be Mukherjee's first meet with Kasuri after the resumption of interrupted peace talks between India and Pakistan and after the Indian minister's shift from defence to foreign ministry.
If the two strike a personal rapport, it will be beneficial for both the countries. Kasuri, who arrived on Saturday, will be leaving Monday evening.
Talking to reporters at the Indira Gandhi International Airport on Saturday, Kasuri said "lot of progress" has been achieved on the Siachen issue.
"Our position is clear. We understand that there has been a lot of progress (on Siachen) and it requires some meetings, and given the political will, it should be resolved." Kasuri has long been insisting that Siachen can be solved if the political leadership in India is willing to do so. But the Indian army after the Kargil war is not likely to hold much faith on Pakistan, and is not willing to withdraw from the positions they now hold without proper authentication.
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