Krishna briefs PM on his talks in Pakistan

Soon after his return from Islamabad, External Affairs Minister SM Krishna on Friday apprised Prime Minister Manmohan Singh of his talks which ended in sharp differences over issues like Kashmir.

Soon after his return from Islamabad, External Affairs Minister S M Krishna today apprised Prime Minister Manmohan Singh of his talks which ended in sharp differences over issues like Kashmir.

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Krishna was with Singh for about 30 minutes during which he gave a detailed account of his talks with Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and meetings with President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani.

He did not speak to the waiting media persons.

However, prior to his meeting with Singh, he said he had discussed with Qureshi all "core" and "burning" issues with an aim of reducing trust deficit between the two countries.

Krishna said he had made it clear to his Pakistani interlocutors that terrorism was the core issue and unless it was addressed, "all other efforts will be futile".

He said he had conveyed to Pakistan that terrorism was the "biggest obstacle" in normalisation of relations and "focussed" action will have to be taken by Islamabad to build trust and confidence.

The Foreign Ministerial talks in Islamabad were held as per the mandate given by Singh and Gilani to them to discuss steps for reduction of trust deficit.