No meeting scheduled for Nawaz and Modi at UNGA

Published September 24, 2015
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif (L) and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi (R) are due to stay at the same hotel in New York during the meeting of world leaders this month. — AP/File
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif (L) and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi (R) are due to stay at the same hotel in New York during the meeting of world leaders this month. — AP/File

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and India have no plan to meet at the upcoming United Nations (UN) General Assembly, the Pakistani foreign office said on Thursday, scotching speculation that the leaders of the two nations might seek the opportunity to improve rocky ties.

Both Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi are due to stay at the same hotel in New York during the meeting of world leaders this month, leading some media to speculate the two would meet.

But Foreign Ministry spokesman Qazi Khalilullah denied those reports.

"No proposal is on the table for the meeting of the two PMs," he told Reuters.

Read: Sharif-Modi meeting in US unlikely

Planned talks between national security advisors from the two neighbours were cancelled last month hours before they were due to start, dashing hopes the two might tackle the violence that many fear could one day spark a nuclear showdown.

India and Pakistan have fought three wars since becoming independent nations in 1947, two of them over the Himalayan region of Kashmir, which both claim in full but rule in part.

Sharif was elected in 2013 promising to improve relations with India, but since then domestic troubles have forced him to cede more control over foreign and security policy to Pakistan's military.

Modi, who took office in May last year, has taken a hard line with Pakistan, insisting he is unwilling to discuss other issues unless Pakistan admits its role in terror attacks in India.

In last month's cancelled talks, India wanted to only discuss terrorism-related issues.

Pakistan wanted a wider agenda, including the status of Kashmir, a topic that Khalilullah said Sharif would raise at the UN.

Opinion

Editorial

Competing narratives
03 Dec, 2024

Competing narratives

Rather than hunting keyboard warriors, it would be better to support a transparent probe into reported deaths during PTI protest.
Early retirement
03 Dec, 2024

Early retirement

THE government is reportedly considering a proposal to reduce the average age of superannuation by five years to 55...
Being differently abled
03 Dec, 2024

Being differently abled

A SOCIETY comes of age when it does not normalise ‘othering’. As we observe the International Day of Persons ...
The ban question
Updated 02 Dec, 2024

The ban question

Parties that want PTI to be banned don't seem to realise they're veering away from the very ‘democratic’ credentials they claim to possess.
5G charade
Updated 02 Dec, 2024

5G charade

What use is faster internet when the state is determined to police every byte of data its citizens consume?
Syria offensive
Updated 02 Dec, 2024

Syria offensive

If Al Qaeda’s ideological allies establish a strong foothold in Syria, it will fuel transnational terrorism.