Imran Khan seeks resumption of peace in letter to Modi
Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has written to PM Narendra Modi, seeking resumption of peaceful dialogue between the two neighboring countries. He, specifically, asked for a meeting between Sushma Swaraj and Shah Mehmood Qureshi, the Indian and Pakistan's foreign ministers respectively, on the sidelines of United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) later this month. Here are the details.
The letter is a response to Modi's call for peace
Khan's letter is supposedly in response to Modi's own communication of seeking to engage a "meaningful and constructive" dialogue between the two countries. Modi called for a peace talk after Khan, in his victory speech, said that Pakistan would take two steps to any step taken by India, to normalize the ties between the countries, which are at loggerheads with each other since forever.
Pakistan will try resolving Kashmir issue through dialogues: Imran
In his letter, reportedly, Khan has invited Modi to resume the comprehensive bilateral dialogue process which was initially launched in December 2015, but couldn't take off as the Pathankot airbase attack happened then itself. Keeping that attack in mind, Khan has written that India and Pakistan should try resolving all the major issues, including terrorism and Kashmir, through peaceful dialogues.
Is Sushma Swaraj meeting Qureshi finally?
While Pakistan has almost confirmed that it has already "engaged" with India to clear the way for a bilateral meeting between Qureshi and Sushma Swaraj, Foreign Office (FO) spokesperson Mohammad Faisal said that no decision has been taken yet. "We are engaged in that matter," said Faisal, when asked about the reports of the bilateral meeting between the two foreign ministers.
Too keen to ease ties with India?
Khan's letter is the first formal proposal from Pakistan for peace talks with India. Not just the letter, to ease tensions with India, Pakistan had also asked for US' help earlier this month, mentioning that peace on the Eastern border will help them concentrate on the Western border with Afghanistan. Notably, Qureshi raised the issue when US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited Pakistan.
