When Modi-Nawaz did pep talk on wars between India and Pakistan

A Pakistan government source said that the meeting between Modi and Sharif was so cordial that during their nearly 50-minute conversation, there was no “substantive mention” of either Jammu and Kashmir or terrorism.

To a question, he said promotion of good relations with all neighbours is the policy of Prime Minister Sharif as this is a pre-requisite to benefit from projects aimed at regional connectivity and resolution of energy crisis.

Official level talks between the countries are scheduled to start in mid-January, 2016.

Earlier in the day, Pakistani Foreign Ministry spokesman Qazi Khalilullah said India had informed Pakistan about the visit on Friday.

“General Janjua has enormous experience in these matters”.

While the talk was mostly centred on “positives”, a source said, “Sharif was really relaxed… and he used Punjabi humour to keep everyone at ease, from the word go”.

This was the second meeting between the two Prime Ministers in less than a month, after their interaction on the sidelines of the climate change talks in Paris on November 30. “They both have martyred Muslims – Modi in Gujarat and Shahbaz Sharif in Model Town Lahore”, commented the PML-Q leader.

Affirming that it was wrong to think that reservoirs of knowledge are confined to only some cities, the Prime Minister said the youth with abilities are spread all over the country.

The Government may come up with tax breaks, more incubation centres and easier approval process as part of the action plan to boost start-up ecosystem in India. The real decision-making is happening behind the scenes.

Addressing a round-table interaction on Kashmir in the capital Islamabad, he, however, said that Pakistan would continue to support the Kashmir cause but wants a peaceful solution to the issue. The visit was also welcomed yesterday by the United States and United Nations. Shortly thereafter, Modi was seen off by Sharif at the airport.

Modi was received by Nawaz Sharif, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and other Pakistani officials at Lahore’s Allama Iqbal International Airport. We should remember: Although India and Pakistan are divided by boundaries, they have a common heritage, language and culture.

Nawaz and Raghavan discussed bilateral issues and the envoy’s role during his stay as the high commissioner in Pakistan, Dawn online reported.

Modi’s optics have succeeded in convincing Pakistani leaders once again that a hardline BJP was more decisive than the Congress. “Sharif flying in the same chopper with Modi was the biggest assurance that security would be top-notch”, a senior official told ET. “It’s a new Modi in an old bottle; Nawaz Sharif should take it one sip at a time”.