COLOMBO, Nov 22: Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz on Monday reiterated Pakistan's commitment to the composite dialogue with India and said his forthcoming visit to New Delhi would augur well for the ongoing peace process.
In response to a question at an interaction with a cross-section of civil society in Sri Lanka, including Pakistanis, before embarking on the next leg of his tour that takes him to India on Tuesday, he said: "I am confident that my visit to Delhi will improve the atmosphere and create better understanding."
Asked about his expectations from the visit in the backdrop of President Gen Pervez Musharraf's proposals on Kashmir, he said: "It should not be seen as a transactional process but as an ongoing process. We believe in the continuation of dialogue."
He said that since the Saarc summit in January, relations between the two countries had improved considerably and interaction had increased at all levels. On a lighter note, he said: "We have also started cricket diplomacy and the atmosphere is sportsman-like."
The prime minister said he would discuss all issues during his talks with the Indian leadership, including Jammu and Kashmir. "From our perspective the key issue is the Kashmir dispute," he said.
He was optimistic that his talks with his Indian counterpart Dr Manmohan Singh would create a better milieu for future dialogue. Mr Aziz ducked a question regarding conflicting signals being given by India on the Kashmir issue.
He acknowledged India's move on troop reduction in occupied Kashmir as a welcome step and expressed the hope that it would continue. He clarified that President Musharraf had made no formal proposals on Kashmir but merely presented a scenario to initiate a national debate.
He said the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation had suffered due to strained relations between Pakistan and India. He said that during his visit to India he would review the overall Saarc relationship and look at creating mutual dependencies.
Talking at the gathering, the prime minister said no country could progress without foreign direct investment. He ascribed Pakistan's economic turnaround to intense fiscal discipline.
He said Pakistan had a liberal investment regime to attract foreign investors. He said 85 per cent of the banking sector in the country was in the private sector. He said Pakistan would float the Islamic bonds in the international market in eight to 12 weeks.
