India, Pak diplomats meet to discuss timing for talks

New Delhi/Islamabad/Washington: India and Pakistan on Friday discussed the dates for talks between their foreign secretaries and the scope of their dialogue that could include other issues besides terrorism.

India's offer of foreign secretary-level talks has predictably raised hopes in Islamabad about a revival of the composite dialogue, with its top leadership discussing the Indian proposal. The US, too, welcomed it, but a cautious New Delhi feels that it is premature to judge the outcome of the talks.

Pakistan's High Commissioner Shahid Malik met Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao on Friday evening to discuss dates for the talks between foreign secretaries of the two countries, likely later this month.

Rao had rang up her Pakistani counterpart Salman Bashir ten days ago to invite him to come to New Delhi for talks, sources said.

This will be the first meeting between the two foreign secretaries since they met in New York on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in September last year.

Rao and Malik also discussed the scope of dialogue with India making it clear it will hold "discussions with an open and positive mind." The Pakistani side is pitching to include the issue of Kashmir in the forthcoming talks, but New Delhi wants to focus the discussions on terror at this stage.

India had frozen the composite dialogue in the wake of the attacks that it blamed on elements operating from Pakistan.

It's the first step to test the waters, the sources said. Any decision on resuming the composite dialogue will be taken by Prime Minister Manmohan Signh himself, the sources added.

Much will also depend on Home Minister P. Chidambaram's meetings with Pakistani leaders when he goes to attend the SAARC meting in Islamabad, which was scheduled for Feb 26-28 but has now been postponed.

A positive assessment by India after the talks between foreign secretaries could set the stage for the meeting between their foreign ministers and prime ministers on the sidelines of the SAARC summit in Thimpu April 28-29.

A day after it became public that India had taken a major step by proposing talks between the foreign secretaries, Pakistan Friday termed it a "positive development" and hoped that it will lead to the full resumption of the composite dialogue. Islamabad also sought clarifications on the agenda for discussions and reiterated that terrorism could not alone be the topic for the talks.

"Overall it is a positive development and we welcome it," Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson Abdul Basit told a private TV channel.

After the receipt of the Indian proposal, Pakistan had sought a clarification about the agenda and a reply is awaited, he said. As soon as India responds to this step, further progress would take place, he added.

Hours after the news broke about India's offer, Pakistan's top leadership met in Islamabad Thursday evening to discuss its position.

Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi and army chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani were present at the staggered meetings.

Zardari and Kayani first held a one-on-one meeting and Gilani joined them later. Zardari subsequently hosted a dinner that Qureshi also attended.

Qureshi told TV channels that depending on the response to Pakistan's queries from India, Islamabad would like an early resumption of talks.

"We would like to restart from where we left off," he said, referring to the freezing of the composite dialogue process.

Pakistan has admitted that part of the Mumbai conspiracy was hatched in this country. The trial is also underway here of six operatives of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) for their alleged role in the attack, which India says was masterminded by the terror group's founder, Hafiz Saeed.

The new sign of thaw between the two estranged neighbours was quickly welcomed by Washington, which has always batted for the resumption of dialogue as it feels it will allow the Pakistani military to concentrate on the war against the Taliban.

"We are supportive of dialogue among India, Pakistan and Afghanistan as a key component of moving ahead and achieving a stable region," State Department spokesman Philip J. Crowley told reporters in Washington on Thursday.