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New
Delhi/Islamabad: When Pakistan's new Foreign Minister
Hina Rabbani Khar comes to New Delhi next week for talks with
External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna, she may offer prayers at
the Jama Masjid, the 17th century mosque located in old Delhi,
official sources said.
Ahead of her visit, Khar, 34, Pakistan's youngest and first woman
foreign minister, has underlined that her priority would be to set
a future direction for the bilateral relationship.
Accompanied by senior officials, Khar comes here Tuesday by a
special flight.
She may go to Jama Masjid to offer prayers during the visit,
well-informed sources said. There is, however, no confirmation of
her visit to the monument. "Nothing is decided as yet. Her
programme is evolving," an official source said.
She is also likely to meet Hurriyat leaders at the residence of
Pakistan's high commissioner. Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, the head of the
moderate faction of the Hurriyat Conference, is among Kashmiri
leaders expected to meet Khar.
In an interview with Pakistan's state-run PTV, Khar said it was a
"positive step" that India was serious about the talks and was
moving to institutionalise the process of negotiations with
Pakistan. There was forward movement in recent talks between the
two countries, she said.
It was the success of Pakistan to bring India back to the
negotiating table, and the priority for the upcoming talks would
be to set a future direction for the bilateral relationship, she
added.
She said that Pakistan is pro-actively engaging with neighbouring
countries, particularly Afghanistan and India, to achieve
sustainable peace and stability in the region.
India and Pakistan Thursday had announced that talks between their
foreign ministers will take place July 27.
Issues relating to cross-border terror will figure prominently in
the discussions. The two sides are likely to unveil a slew of new
confidence building measures to expand trade and travel across the
divided halves of Kashmir.
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