India prepared to discuss all outstanding issues with Pak: Rao Yoshita Singh

RAO-LD PAK


Boston, Sept 21 (PTI) India is prepared to "discuss
all outstanding issues" with Pakistan, including Jammu and
Kashmir but it has to take "ameliorative action" to eradicate
terrorism against the country.
"The issue of Jammu & Kashmir comes up in our
relationship with Pakistan and we've said very clearly, very
confidently and very transparently that we are prepared to
discuss all outstanding issues with Pakistan," India's Foreign
Secretary Nirupama Rao said here Monday.
Asserting that India's relationship with Pakistan has
been "complicated" due to terrorism, Rao said "terror groups
implacably opposed to India continue to recruit, train and
plot attacks from safe havens across our borders" and
stressed "the need for Pakistan to take ameliorative action to
eradicate terrorism against India."
The Foreign Secretary made these comments just before
a likely meeting between the foreign ministers of India and
Pakistan on the sidelines of the forthcoming UN General
Assembly's annual meeting in New York.
"Despite this threat, we understand well the Kautilyan
advice that a great power loses stature if it remains bogged
down in neighbourhood entanglements," the Foreign Secretary
said while delivering a lecture at Harvard University.
Rao said India wants to create an economic
environment with its neighbours since a peaceful neighbourhood
is mandatory for the "realisation of our own vision of
economic growth."
Rao added that India wants to "persevere in our
dialogue with Pakistan. It is not about segmenting this
dialogue or taking away the complicated issues from it saying
we are not ready to discuss it.
That is certainly not our approach. We want to
discuss all the outstanding issues and that will also include
the issue of Jammu and Kashmir."
The top diplomat, who was in Washington earlier to
discuss President Barack Obama's upcoming India visit in
November, stressed that Kashmir is an internal matter as far
as India is concerned.
"It is an internal affair because it (Kashmir) is an
integral part of India."
She said India is "determined to persevere in our
dialogue with Pakistan to resolve outstanding issues so that
our region will be stable and so that the rationale of
economic development in an atmosphere of peace, for all of
South Asia, remains our steadfast goal." (MORE) PTI YAS
MRD


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