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Pakistan, India meet to push dialogue process: official

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Islamabad, Jan 16, IRNA
Pakistan-India talks
Pakistan top diplomat, who will be leading his country's 11-member team in talks with rival India in New Delhi, said on Monday the two sides will review progress of the ongoing dialogue process.

"We will see where we stand and how to push the peace process forward," Foreign Secretary Riaz Mohammad Khan told reporters on his departure for Delhi.

"The two-day foreign secretary level talks on January 17 and 18 will mark the beginning of the third round of the composite dialogue process.

"The meeting will discuss two main items, the Jammu and Kashmir problem and peace and security, Khan said.

The two sides will also touch bilateral matters, he said, giving no details.

The Foreign Secretary said the two sides have completed two rounds of the composite dialogue and the Delhi talks meeting explore ways how to push the process.

Meanwhile Foreign Office Spokesperson Tasneem Aslam Monday said Islamabad is hopeful for constructive discussion with India during the third round of composite dialogue in New Delhi.

"The third round of composite dialogue is itself a key development and we hope for positive discussions," the FO Spokesperson who is accompanying the Pakistani delegation told PTV on telephone.

Pakistani delegation is going for talks with positive approach and hopefully the discussion would help indicate the direction of dialogue process in the future.

She said the issues of Jammu and Kashmir and peace and security including confidence building measures are the items on agenda for the third round adding "We have some proposals and ideas to discuss with the Indian side on these issues."
To a question she said, it would be premature to comment on the expected results of the third round discussion. When the parties enter into talks, they enter with the positive approach, she said.

The spokesperson added the discussion would of course help set the direction of future talks between the two countries.

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