Pakistan looking towards Indian new govt for talks: Fawad

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Chaudhry Fawad Hussain has said that Pakistan is prepared to talk to Indian leadership after general elections for normalisation of bilateral relations and to move things forward from where they had stopped.

In an interview with leading Indian newspaper ‘Hindustan Times’ he said diplomatic channels that were used to reduce tensions in the aftermath of Pulwama attack remain operational, albeit in the backdrop.However, the Pakistani leadership believes there will be no forward movement until India’s election process is completed, he added.

Asked about Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi’s comments, Chaudhry Fawad replied, I think the Foreign Minister referred to the statement of Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi that he has given the entire authority for all actions to the military. From that, he inferred that if this authority has been given, it could be misused at any time.

He said Islamabad is looking towards engaging with the new dispensation in New Delhi after the completion of the Indian elections. Pakistan hopes the election process is completed peacefully and whichever government comes to power, we will sit with them and see how things can move forward.

It is obvious the atmosphere that developed post-Pulwama and tensions are not in interest of the people or the region, he said.

Chaudhry Fawad said diplomatic channels are being used to address bilateral tensions. Even in the peak of tensions, the channels were being used and the diplomatic channels are in the backdrop.

The high commissioners are in their places. But the way in which war frenzy has been created in India, especially in the media, that leads to fears but things are moving on, he said. However, he said the post-Pulwama tensions had not been adequately addressed on the Indian side. From the Pakistani side, there was never any war frenzy. We tried to reduce the retaliation; we have actually behaved very responsibly. So this is not our issue, and we should see whether the war frenzy in India has lessened, he said.

Chaudhry Fawad described Islamabad’s plan to release 360 Indian prisoners who had completed their sentences as a reflection of the desire to normalise ties with India. This shows the Pakistani intention of normalisation with India and we will continue this policy, he said.