Search the Internet          Tips  Indo-Pak Summit

Pakistan formally invites Vajpayee, Jaswant

Pakistan has sent formal invitations to Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh to visit Islamabad at their earliest convenient date for follow up talks on Agra summit, a media report said on Monday.

"Separate letters have been sent to both the Indian leaders on Saturday expressing Pakistan's desire to pursue peace process and reach an understanding on all contentious issues including the issue of Kashmir," Pakistan daily The Nation said.

The Pakistan officials were not immediately available for comments on the report.

The invitation to Vajpayee was sent by Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf, while the invitation for Jaswant Singh was signed by his counterpart, Abdul Sattar.

"Through the letter Paksitan has once again reiterated its determination to resolve all outstanding issues through peaceful means," it said.

Both Vajpayee and Singh have in principle accepted the oral invitations extended during the Agra Summit to carry forward the talks in order to resolve differences between the two countries, it said.

Though the summit talks failed to produce a joint declaration or a joint statement, Pakistan agreed with India in asserting that talks have not failed but remained 'inconclusive'.

Official indications are that Singh would visit Islamabad in September before the Vajpayee-Musharraf meeting during the annual UN General Assembly meet at New York.

Pakistan official establishment, however, projected that Vajpayee could also be visiting Islamabad by the end of the year.

PTI

Indo-Pak Summit 2001: The Complete Coverage

Back to top

Tell us what you think of this report