Efforts for resumption of dialogue with India ongoing: Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan said today that efforts for the resumption of dialogue with India are ongoing and the top officials from the two sides have met recently.

Foreign Office spokesman Mohammad Faisal also said that Pakistan has never refused to hold dialogue with India.

He also talked about Indian High Commissioner Ajay Bisaria's meeting with Pakistan's National Security Advisor Naseer Khan Janjua this week in Islamabad.


"Also, our High Commissioner in New Delhi had met with the Indian NSA. Efforts for resumption of dialogue are ongoing. We will let you know of the developments, if any," Faisal said.

After the meeting between Bisaria and Janjua on Tuesday, Pakistan's NSA Office issued a statement saying the two discussed matters pertaining to improving the bilateral relations including the recent worsening situation in Jammu and Kashmir.

The statement said that both sides agreed to explore the possibilities of more cooperation and of improving bilateral relations to ultimately take it towards comprehensive process of dialogue.

At the weekly media briefing today, Faisal also said that amendment of terrorist designation by the US to include new groups and individual close to Jammat-ud Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed was not internationally binding on Pakistan.

Faisal said the US State Department has amended its terrorist designation of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) to include the aliases Milli Muslim League (MML) and Tehreek-e-Azadi-e-Kashmir (TAJK).

He said the US Treasury department has also listed seven members of the MML central leadership for acting on behalf of the LeT on its Specially Designated Nationals List.

These individuals are Saifullah Khalid, Muzammil Iqbal Hashmi, Muhammad Harris Dar, tabish Qayyum, Fayyaz Ahmad, Faisal Nadeem and Muhammad Ehsan.

He said that Pakistan had already listed TAJK as proscribed and this was conveyed to visiting US Ambassador Elis Wells when she raised this issue in the meeting with the Foreign Secretary on March 29.

"Additionally, the US amendment in its domestic designation does not trigger internationally binding obligations for Pakistan. Therefore, the US decision may be seen in its domestic context," he said.

Faisal said the issue of MML was subjudice before the Court and Election Commission of Pakistan and he could not comment on its status.

To a question, he said that Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi will visit China on Sunday.