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Islamabad ready to discuss all issues: Pak envoy

Source:PTI
June 30, 2003 21:19 IST

Pakistan's new High Commissioner Aziz Ahmed Khan, who arrived in Delhi on Monday night, said Islamabad was ready to discuss all issues with India and hoped the stalled dialogue would be resumed 'very soon' even as he denied his country's involvement in cross-border terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir.

"Whichever level the talks start, we will welcome them. We are ready and we have been saying this for long time. I think this has been repeated at the highest level," Khan told reporters soon after crossing the border at Wagah and later at Pakistan House in Delhi.

Khan, who replaces Ashraf Jehangir Qazi, will formally take charge after presenting his credentials to President A P J Abdul Kalam.

His arrival marks the first major move towards taking forward the peace process initiated by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in Srinagar on April 18.

The two sides have also decided to restart the Lahore-Delhi bus service and air links.

Shortly after crossing over the border with his wife Ayasha, Khan, an old India hand, said his priority would be to speed up the process of normalisation of relations by resolving all issues through dialogue and negotiations between the two countries.

A career diplomat and a former spokesman of the Pakistani foreign ministry, Khan stuck to Islamabad's oft-repeated line that his country was not encouraging no cross-border terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir.

He chose not to reply to questions on Saturday's militant attack on an army camp on the outskirts of Jammu that left 13 personnel dead and several injured.

More reports from Pakistan

Source: PTI
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