ISLAMABAD, Nov 28: Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmad has said the ceasefire is the beginning of a process which would lead to a dialogue for resolving all outstanding issues between Pakistan and India.

Talking to reporters here on Friday, he said Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali’s unilateral announcement of a ceasefire had been hailed by the international community as a “right decision, in the right direction, at the right time.”

He said the initiative will have a positive impact on the region.

The minister appreciated the positive response by India to Pakistan’s peace overture.

He expressed the hope that all contentious issues, including the core issue of Jammu and Kashmir, would be discussed at length during the forthcoming visit of Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee to Pakistan to attend the Saarc summit in January next year.

He underlined the need of resolving the lingering Jammu and Kashmir dispute in a peaceful manner and stressed that peace in the region would remain elusive till the settling of this imbroglio.

The minister said that Pakistan was ready to hold composite dialogue with India but the Kashmir issue must not be excluded from the agenda.

He observed that any talks would be meaningless if the Kashmir issue was sidelined.—PPI