 "Sushma Swaraj, Pakistan")
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Reflecting the thaw in Indo-Pak ties, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj flew in here today on a two-day visit during which she will discuss with the Pakistani leadership the ways to improve bilateral relations.
Essentially here for an important multilateral conference on Afghanistan, Swaraj's visit nevertheless provides an opportunity to both the countries to overcome recent bitterness and move towards resumption of bilateral dialogue, the format and mechanism for which are being worked out.
Swaraj is slated to call on Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and meet her counterpart Sartaj Aziz tomorrow after which the two sides may indicate the way forward in the dialogue process.
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"I have come with the message that ties between the two countries should be good and move forward," said Swaraj, who is here to lead the Indian delegation at the 'Heart of Asia' 5th Ministerial Meeting on Afghanistan tomorrow.
She refused to share what she would be discussing with Pakistani leaders, but said, "What will happen during the talks will be known after meeting."
"Heart of Asia conference is very important for India because it is associated with Afghanistan. That is why I have come here to participate. Since it is happening in Pakistan it is necessary and appropriate for me to meet Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and hold talks with my counterpart Sartaj Aziz to talk about improving the bilateral ties and take them forward," Swaraj said.
Yesterday, Aziz had said the focus of talks would be on the resumption of composite dialogue process.
Adopting a cautious approach over the agenda of talks between Swaraj and Aziz, Indian officials said they will see how the meeting goes and if there will be any point of convergence.
Swaraj's visit comes after talks between the National Security Advisors of India and Pakistan in Bangkok on Sunday, where they discussed terrorism, Jammu and Kashmir and a range of key bilateral issues apart from agreeing to carry forward the "constructive" engagement.
Aziz had said yesterday that the deadlock in Indo-Pak ties had eased to some extent.
