Swaraj to visit Pakistan, talks with Aziz, Afghanistan meet on table

NEW DELHI: External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will travel tomorrow for a multilateral conference in Islamabad, where she will also hold talks with her Pakistani counterpart Sartaj Aziz, who said the focus would be on the resumption of composite dialogue process.

"External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj to lead Indian delegation for ' Heart of Asia' 5th Ministerial Meeting on Afghanistan on December 9 in Islamabad," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted.

Swaraj's visit comes two days after talks between the National Security Advisors of India and Pakistan yesterday in Bangkok, where they discussed terrorism, Jammu and Kashmir and a range of key bilateral issues apart from agreeing to carry forward the "constructive" engagement.

She will call on Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and meet his Adviser on Foreign Affairs Aziz on the sidelines of the Afghan meet on Wednesday.

In Islamabad, Aziz told reporters that Swaraj is arriving tomorrow to attend the 'Heart of Asia' Conference and during her visit she will also call on Sharif.

Aziz said the deadlock in Indo-Pak ties had eased to some extent.

During his talks with Swaraj, Aziz said various matters with focus on resumption of composite dialogue process between the two countries will be discussed.

Swaraj's visit comes three years after former External Affairs Minister S M Krishna travelled to Islamabad in 2012 when the countries also inked a visa liberalisation pact.

During her visit, Swaraj will be accompanied by Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar, who was also present during the four-hour-long meeting between National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and his Pakistani counterpart Naseer Janjua in the Thai capital.