PAK-QURESHI 2

Qureshi was replying to a question on whether India
would be willing to include issues like Kashmir in the
upcoming parleys.

It was "really not that important" where the parleys
are held, he said, adding Pakistan would approach the talks
with an open mind.
Referring to the Kashmir, Qureshi pointed out that
even India had started "quiet diplomacy with the Kashmiris".
At the same time, he said, the sharing of river waters
is important because Pakistan "is an agriculture-based country
and 90 per cent of our water is needed for agriculture".
Pakistan will also raise the issue of "strategic
balance" in the upcoming talks, he said.
Following India's recent offer for holding talks,
Qureshi chaired an inter-ministerial meeting yesterday to
assess the proposal and to formulate Pakistan's response.
A statement issued by the Foreign Office after the
meeting made it clear that Pakistan favoured the resumption of
the stalled composite dialogue to resolve all outstanding
issues.
Asked if India wanted the upcoming talks to focus
solely on terrorism, Qureshi replied that Foreign Secretary
Rao had told Pakistan's High Commissioner to India Shahid
Malik that "all issues can be put forward and discussed".
"They can raise whatever issue they want and we will
do the same. If we are to have a meaningful engagement, there
should not be conditions. There will be no benefits if
conditionalities are imposed. Conditions will prevent the
dialogue from moving forward," he said. MORE PTI RHL
AHM


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