Need to take Atal’s initiative forward: Advani on PM’s Pak visit

It’s the first time an Indian prime minister has visited Pakistan in nearly 12 years.

A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s surprise Lahore visit, BJP veteran L K Advani on Saturday said Modi and other leaders in government should work to carry forward Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s initiative for improving Indo-Pak ties and get rid of problem of terrorism.

Tensions run deep between the two nuclear-armed neighbors.

Further, sources added that before Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar leaves for Pakistan, he is likely to have review meetings with secretaries and departments concerned to understand the “possible new areas” of cooperation.

As per a report in First Post, Pakistani PM’s brother, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif was also present at Raiwind palace when Modi uttered these words. The Prime Minister was then hosted at the Raiwand Palace that is also the personal residence and ancestral home of Prime Minister of Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif.

While China was reluctant to talk terror because of Pakistani sensitivities, Indian officials say they have seen a new approach from Beijing amid rising violence in Xinjiang region, which has been blamed by Chinese officials on Islamist groups.

The New York Times said the tense relations between India and Pakistan “have long anxious American policy makers, who fear that proxy wars between the two countries could flare into a real one”.

Adviser to Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz on Tuesday told the Upper House that India had changed its hostile attitude towards Pakistan because of worldwide pressure.

He was making a statement in the Senate regarding the short visit of the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Pakistan on 25th of this month. Pakistan’s Foreign Secretary Aizaz Chaudhry also considers it to be a good will visit by Modi. “Matters of bilateral interests come under discussion during the meeting”, according to Radio Pakistan.

“Modi wished Sharif happy birthday and congratulated him on her granddaughter’s wedding”, he said.

The outgoing Indian High Commissioner Dr TCA Raghavan paid a farewell call on Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in Islamabad on Tuesday.