Islamabad: Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Indian Minister for External Affairs Sushma Swaraj held a meeting to discuss bilateral issues on the sidelines of the ‘Heart of Asia’ conference here on Wednesday.
Swaraj confirmed during the meeting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Pakistan for the South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (Saarc) summit expected to be held in September 2016, official sources said.
Prime Minister Sharif’s adviser on foreign affairs Sartaj Aziz and special assistant Tariq Fatemi attended the meeting. Swaraj also met the prime minister’s daughter Mariam Nawaz.
Earlier, in her speech at the regional conference, Swaraj focused on increased connectivity, regional trade and openness with Afghanistan, and also “extended India’s hand towards Pakistan” in this regard.
“It is time we [Pakistan and India] display maturity and self confidence to do business with each other ... the entire world is watching and we must not disappoint them,” she said.
She added India will extend its cooperation at a pace Pakistan is comfortable with.
Swaraj said connectivity also lies at the heart of India’s own efforts to push for regional economic cooperation.
Nothing can benefit Afghanistan more immediately than full and direct access to India’s markets to enable it to take advantage of the zero-duty regime, the Indian external affairs minister said.
She also conveyed India’s willingness to join the Afghanistan-Pakistan trade and transit agreement.
The Indian minister singled out terrorism as the biggest deterrent to progress and peace in Afghanistan and said India was ready to help Afghanistan strengthen its defence.
