No need for cajoling on militancy: Hina

ISLAMABAD - Pakistans newly elevated Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar Saturday termed Indo-Pak dialogue a positive step. Talking to mediamen, Khar said the priority of her government during talks with India was to set a future direction in the bilateral relationship. Highlighting Pakistans position during the upcoming talks with India, she said the government wanted to look at the entire picture and at the root causes of the problems. It is the success of Pakistan to bring India back to the negotiating table, she added. She said during her talks with Indian External Affairs Minister SM Krishna, the two sides would take stock of progress made at secretary-level talks. She said Pakistan was proactively engaging with neighbouring countries, particularly Afghanistan and India, to achieve sustainable peace and stability in the region. To a question about the arrest of Kashmiri leader Ghulam Nabi Fai in the US on charges of working for Pakistani intelligence agencies, Khar said Fai was a US citizen and he will be able to resolve his present problem within the available system. Pakistan and India have agreed to hold ministerial-level talks on July 27. Reuters adds: Pakistans foreign minister, who held talks on Saturday with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Nusa Dua, Indonesia, said the two countries shared the strategic objective of combating terror groups and Islamabad did not need any cajoling on the issue. Khar also told reporters on the sidelines of an Asian security conference that she expected positive results from a meeting with her Indian counterpart next week, in what could be a major turning point in ties between the two countries since they resumed peace talks earlier this year. Asked if Clinton prodded her on tackling militants operating from within Pakistan, Khar said: We have the same strategic objective. Pakistan is the first one to suffer because of terrorism, because of militancy. Pakistan is doing it for itself. You dont need cajoling on that, that is in our national interest. On her talks with Indian Foreign Minister SM Krishna scheduled for next Wednesday in New Delhi, Khar said: My expectation is to have positive development in our relationship with India. It has been a baptism by fire for Khar, who was appointed to the post just this week, after five months as junior foreign minister. Besides Clinton, she also met Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi on the sidelines of the security forum in Indonesia. Khar, 34, also said she was comfortable about being in a senior post at a young age. Our culture reveres anyone who has the ability to work for the country and young or old does not make such a difference as much as what your approach is, what your goals are and as much as how you approach a problem, she said. Hina Rabbani Khar and Hillary Clinton on Saturday agreed that there existed strategic convergence between Pakistan and the United States and that there was a need to translate it into a win-win situation. They also agreed that an early return of peace and stability in Afghanistan would have a positive impact on overall situation in the region, according to a foreign office press release. Clinton underscored the importance of bilateral relations noting that Pakistan, as a nation, has great potential. She said that terrorism was a common threat both to Pakistan and the US and stressed the need for continued close cooperation against this menace. Both, Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar and Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, emphasised the need for an early convening of the strategic dialogue and undertook to remain in contact.