Ind-Pak joint statement shows signs of positive movement

New Delhi: Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday described the decision to revive the stalled Indo-Pak dialogue process as a positive movement, saying it was a step forward towards normalising bilateral relations. 

“The Indo-Pak joint statement at Ufa (in Russia on outsome of talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and hisPakistan counterpart Nawaz Sharif) shows signs of positive movement. The engagement at different levels will hopefully open new possibilities,” he said here in a statement. 

Congratulating Prime Minister Modi for his “statesman-like approach” and engaging Pakistan at the diplomatic level, the Home Minister said the decision to revive talks is a step forward towards normalising bilateral relations. 

“However, the future outcome will be keenly watched,” he said. 

Singh said the decision to hold talks between the Director General of Border Security Force and Director General of Pakistan Rangers will also help in stabilising the situation along the Indo-Pak border. 

“I welcome the decision to expedite the trial pertaining to 2008 Mumbai attack, including additional information like providing voice samples,” he said. 

Talking about the meetings of DG BSF and DG Pakistan Rangers, NSA Ajit Doval said that the meeting will help bring peace & tranquillity on the border.

Modi and Sharif, in their first bilateral talks in over a year, met for nearly one hour in Ufa in Russia on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit and discussed the entire gamut of issues between the two countries. 

Foreign Secretaries S Jaishankar and Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry held a joint press meet where they read out a joint statement on the outcome of the much-anticipated meeting between the two leaders.

(With inputs from PTI)