Trust deficit with Pakistan shrinking, says Krishna

Striking a positive note ahead of the Indo-Pak prime ministerial meeting, India on Wednesday said the trust deficit with its neighbour was "shrinking" and there was a very positive atmosphere.

Talking to mediapersons on his way to Maldives to attend the SAARC summit, External Affairs Minister S M Krishna said he was very optimistic about the forward movement during the meeting as the "trust level has gone up between the two countries".

Please ...

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani will meet on Thursday in Maldives ahead of the inauguration of the summit of SAARC nations and are expected to review the progress in bilateral ties.

While the heads of governments of the eight SAARC nations -- Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal,

Pakistan and Sri Lanka -- will hold summit talks in Maldives, all eyes are on the Singh-Gilani meeting that comes against the backdrop of positive developments, including Pakistan's decision on granting the MFN trade status to India.

He also said that it was "necessary for Pakistan to work out a joint strategy with India in order to fight terror".

When asked specifically about the existence of terror training camps in Pakistan, the minister said Pakistan has to take action against them.