Imran Khan responds to PM Modi, seeks ‘enabling environment’ for dialogue
In his letter sent to Khan, Modi had said that an atmosphere of trust and devoid of terrorism is “imperative” for better relations between the two sides.
Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has called for creating an enabling environment for a “constructive and result-oriented dialogue” in a letter sent to his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi.
Khan, who is recovering from Covid-19, sent the letter on Monday in response to Modi’s message of greetings on the occasion of Pakistan Day on March 23. The contents of Khan’s letter were confirmed by people familiar with developments in Islamabad.
“The people of Pakistan also desire peaceful, cooperative relations with all neighbours, including India. We are convinced that durable peace and stability in South Asia is contingent upon resolving all outstanding issues between India and Pakistan, in particular the Jammu & Kashmir dispute,” Khan wrote.
“Creation of an enabling environment is imperative for a constructive and result-oriented dialogue,” he added.
There was no immediate response from Indian officials to Khan’s letter.
In his letter sent to Khan, Modi had said that an atmosphere of trust and devoid of terrorism is “imperative” for better relations between the two sides.
“As a neighbouring country, India desires cordial relations with the people of Pakistan. For this, an atmosphere of trust, devoid of terror and hostility, is imperative,” Modi’s letter had said.
Modi also referred to the impact of Covid-19 as a “difficult time for humanity”, and conveyed his best wishes to Khan and the people of Pakistan “for dealing with the challenges” of the pandemic.
In his response, Khan thanked Modi for conveying his greetings on Pakistan Day and conveyed Pakistan’s “best wishes for the people of India in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic”.
President Ram Nath Kovind had also sent a separate message to his Pakistani counterpart Arif Alvi on the occasion of Pakistan Day.
People familiar with developments in New Delhi, speaking on condition of anonymity, had described Modi’s letter as a routine message sent to heads of government or state on national days.
After it recently emerged that Khan had tested positive for Covid-19, Modi had tweeted: “Best wishes to Prime Minister @ImranKhanPTI for a speedy recovery from Covid-19.”
The exchange of letters came against the backdrop of a perceived thaw in India-Pakistan relations, which had suffered a major blow in the wake of a military standoff in early 2019 and New Delhi’s decision to scrap Jammu and Kashmir’s special status the same year.
The Indian and Pakistani armies began strictly adhering to the 2003 ceasefire on the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir from the midnight of February 24 – the apparent outcome of behind-the-scenes contacts between the two countries.
Pakistan Army chief Gen Qamar Bajwa also said recently that the time has come for the two countries to “bury the past and move forward”, though he cautioned that any peace process would be susceptible to disruption without the resolution of the Kashmir issue.
Bajwa made the conciliatory remarks just a day after Khan said India will have to take the first step for improving bilateral ties by addressing Kashmir, the only issue standing in the way of better relations.