Manmohan Singh says yet to decide on meeting with Nawaz Sharif

PM"S SPECIAL AIRCRAFT: Amid suspense over whether he will meet Nawaz Sharif later this month, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said he will have to factor in "certain harsh realities" like India being affected by terror before arriving at a "final decision" on meeting his Pakistani counterpart in New York.

Singh asserted he would be happy to meet Sharif under "normal conditions" as he had respect for the Pakistani premier, who had said the right things about how India-Pakistan relations should evolve.

"But there are certain harsh realities on the ground. If the terror acts do not stop, if those who voice terrorist thoughts move about freely, if there is no significant progress in bringing the culprits of the Mumbai massacre to book - that I have to factor in before arriving at a final decision," he said.

The uncertainty surrounding a Singh-Sharif meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York later this month comes against the backdrop of 26/11 mastermind Hafiz Mohammad Saeed not being brought to justice in Pakistan and moving around freely in that country, and also the lack of progress in the Mumbai attacks trial in Islamabad.

Singh was talking to reporters on board a special Air India plane on his return home after attending the G20 summit in the Russian city of St Petersburg.