Islamabad: It was a warm welcome for External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, as he returned to Islamabad after more than a year, a year in which nearly everything has changed for Pakistan.
“For the sake of our collective futures, we must work together to combat the menace of terrorism,” Mukherjee had said.
Straight from the airport, Mukherjee set about meeting the new dispensation – PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif and PPP chief Asif Ali Zardari before going on to a meeting with ANP leader Asfyandar Wali Khan.
“We always had historic relationships with the Congress party and India and I will always maintain that,” promised Zardari.
Mukherjee landed as the Foreign Secretaries of both sides wound up their talks to review the last round of the composite bilateral dialogue. Though there was equal warmth between them, there was little by way of progress on core issues.
“There is a fair amount of overlap between Pakistani proposals and our proposals. This is an iterative process both sides put ideas on the table, we discuss and we see how we do,” said Foreign Secretary Shiv Shanker Menon.
Amidst a round of otherwise routine talks, Pakistan provided some cheer, announcing the release of 99 Indian prisoners who have served out their sentences.
However, there was no word on the man who would have brought the count to a hundred – Sarabjit Singh.
The two sides also are expected to agree on more cross-border and cross-LoC road links.
On Wednesday Pranab Mukherjee will meet his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mahmood Qureshi and Prime Minister Gillani as well as President Musharraf
Pranab Mukherjee's mission is to meet the new Pakistani leadership and he has made sure he is leaving no one out from across the political spectrum. But the bilateral bonhomie is overcast at present by the deep divide between the PPP and PML-N. Many say that that is the reason these talks may be high on feeling but low on content.
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