Pak says 26/11 a `hiccup` in ties, but wants talks resumption

Rezaul H Laskar
Islamabad, Feb 7 (PTI) Notwithstanding the "hiccup" in
ties in the wake of the Mumbai attacks, Pakistan Saturday made
a bid to reach out to India saying the two countries will have
to live as "good neighbours" and pitched for resumption of the
stalled dialogue.

Amid apprehensions that the probe into the Mumbai
strikes will turn out to be an eyewash, Islamabad asserted
that it wants the investigations to be "transparent" and "open
to examination", saying the government is "serious" in
prosecuting those responsible.

"The most important thing is that India and Pakistan have
to live as good neighbours," Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood
Qureshi said in an interview in Munich, where he is
participating in an international security conference.

"Our democratically elected government started on a
policy of normalisation (with India) and we were doing fairly
well till the unfortunate Mumbai incident that has caused a
hiccup and there is a pause in the composite dialogue," he
said in the interview, excerpts of which were aired by
Pakistani television channels.

India and Pakistan should resume the composite dialogue
process, which began in 2004, to ensure peace in their
neighbourhood, he said.

Qureshi said Pakistan will soon share with India and
the world community the report on its investigation into the
Mumbai attacks.PTI