Thaindian News

New Delhi, June 9 (IANS) Against the backdrop of disclosures by David Coleman Headley linking the ISI spy agency to the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, the foreign secretaries of India and Pakistan will hold talks towards June-end that are expected to set the stage for talks between the foreign ministers of the two countries.

Ahead of the talks, India Thursday reminded Pakistan to bring the perpetrators of the Mumbai attack to justice and stressed that it is not an “unrealistic” demand.

The decision to hold foreign secretary-level talks was conveyed by Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao to a group of Pakistani journalists from leading Urdu media outlets who called on her.

This would be their first engagement since their meeting in February in Thimphu.

However, the dates have not yet been fixed for the meeting.

“Visiting Pakistani journalists called on Foreign Secretary. Next India-Pakistan Foreign Secretary-level talks in late June,” the external affairs ministry spokesperson Vishnu Prakash tweeted here.

The meeting will review the entire gamut of bilateral relations to keep the revived dialogue process on course, government sources said. It is not yet clear whether Rao will travel to Islamabad for talks or her counterpart Salman Bashir will come here.

The talks between the top diplomats could set the stage for talks between the foreign ministers of the two countries, the first such meeting at that level since the failed talks in mid-July last year.

Earlier this year, the two neighbours had agreed to resume their comprehensive dialogue on all bilateral issues to resolve all outstanding issues in a constructive and forward- looking manner.

In the interaction with Pakistani journalists, Rao stressed that India’s demand that Pakistan should do more to bring the perpetrators of the 2008 Mumbai terror attack to justice is not an “unrealisti”" one.

“We want Pakistan to do more to bring the culprits of the Mumbai attacks to justice. Let me tell you, we are not asking for the moon. We are not asking for unrealistic things. We are asking for justicee”, she said.

Rao underlined that India was committed to a dialogue with Pakistan, which resumed earlier this year after a hiatus of over two years following the Mumbai attack that killed 166 people.

“India has shown courage to resume the dialogue with Pakistan as we believe that it is the best way to resolve problems peacefully. We should aim for a sustained dialogue and we must not be impatient. Every step we have taken so far in this regard is a meaningful step,” she said.

Rao conveyed to visiting Pakistani journalists about India’s concerns over terrorism in Pakistan and hoped that Pakista’’s nuclear weapons would not fall into the hands of terrorists.

“Pakistan has got identified with what happened on 26/11 and other terror incidents. It is unfortunate that many people have died in Pakistan owing to terrorism. Pakistan is going through difficult times,” she said.

“Therefore, we want Pakistan to take on board the genuine concerns in this regard,” she added.

“What do you think the sentiments of the people here will be when Saeed makes public speeches against India,” she asked Pakistani journalists while alluding to virulent anti-India speeches by Jamaat-ud-Dawa chief Hafiz Muhammad Saeed, the suspected 26/11 mastermind.