Islamabad, September 06: Pakistani Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani urges the resumption of talks between Islamabad and New Delhi and calls it a prerequisite to peace and development.
“A breakdown in India-Pakistan dialogue would help terrorists, a common enemy to both countries,” Gilani told reporters on Saturday in Karachi. “Dialogue is vital,” he stressed.
The premier said the suspension of Indian-Pakistani negotiations would only serve opportunists and terrorists, a common enemy of both countries.
“We want relations with India on equal basis and it is our resolve that will not allow our soil to be used for terrorism and, therefore, we wanted a proper dialogue to be resumed, as in the present situation the terrorists are benefiting,” Gilani added.
India refrained from wide-range talks with Pakistan on key issues — including the issue of Kashmir — following a round of terrorist attacks on Mumbai last November, which killed over 166 people.
Pakistan has arrested members of the Lashkar-e-Taiba militant group over the attack, but the Indian government says this is not sufficient, and wants to put the terrorists on trial in India.
Bilateral ties between the two nuclear-armed neighbors have long been strained with three wars since their independence from Britain in 1947.
—–Agencies