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Imran Khan writes to Modi, seeks resumption of dialogue at UNGA: Report

Imran Khan, the Prime Minister of Pakistan in a letter to Indian PM Narendra Modi has sought resumption of dialogue between the two at the UN General Assembly in New York later this month, reported the Times of India. 

The report, while quoting the letter, Khan has asked the PM Modi to green light a meeting between external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj and her Pakistani counterpart Shah Mehmood Qureshi on the sidelines of the UN meet,

Khan’s letter is the first formal proposal of bilateral dialogue since he formed the government in Pakistan last month. It came in response to PM Modi’s letter on August 20 which conveyed that New Delhi was looking for constructive and meaningful engagement with Islamabad.

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The PM had noted that India was committed to peaceful neighbourly ties with Pakistan, official sources had said, quoting from the letter.

The two nations have not had any substantial dialogue since 2015 when Swaraj had travelled to Islamabad for Heart of Asia conference. The ties between the two countries had strained after Pakistan-based terror groups launched attacks in India in 2016.

India has made it clear to Pakistan on several occasions that ties and terror would not go together.

Pakistan has confirmed that it has “engaged” with India to facilitate a bilateral meeting between Qureshi and Sushma Swaraj. Foreign Office (FO) spokesperson Mohammad Faisal said that no decision has been taken on the issue so far.

“We are engaged in the matter,” he said when asked about reports that Qureshi and Swaraj may hold a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the UNGA and whether both sides have formally approached each other.

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