Un chief welcomes india, pak decision to engage in dialogue

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon today welcomed the decision by India and Pakistan to engage in a comprehensive dialogue to discuss peace and security issues and hoped for progress in their

efforts to resolve their differences "bilaterally" through negotiations. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon today welcomed the decision by India and Pakistan to engage in a

comprehensive dialogue to discuss peace and security issues and hoped for progress in their efforts to resolve their differences "bilaterally" through negotiations. "We always

welcome the efforts by the leaders of India and Pakistan to resolve any of their differences bilaterally through negotiations and we hope that that proceeds," Ban's deputy

spokesperson Farhan Haq told PTI on Wednesday. Haq was asked about the UN Chief's response to India and Pakistan deciding to engage in a "comprehensive" dialogue that will

include peace and security and Jammu and Kashmir. The decision to move the dialogue process forward came during External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj's two-day visit to Islamabad

where she met Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his Advisor on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz. The positive developments between the nuclear-armed neighbours come just days after Prime

Minister Narendra Modi and Sharif met briefly in Paris on the sidelines of the Climate Change Summit on November 30. India and Pakistan today decided that the Foreign Secretaries will meet

to decide the modalities and schedule of the dialogue. The National Security Advisors (NSAs) of India and Pakistan who had recently met in Bangkok, will continue to address all issues

connected to terrorism, according to a joint statement issued by the two countries.