Experts Discuss Pak-India Ties, Present Suggestions for Improvement

Thu Jun 08 2023
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LAHORE: Experts have said that Pakistan desired good neighbourly ties with India on the basis of equality, mutual respect, and the peaceful resolution of outstanding problems, especially the Kashmir issue.

However, they said, India’s continuous refusal to have a meaningful dialogue on Kashmir and its hegemonic policies and gestures has been a recurrent source of tensions and conflict between the two nations, it was agreed by experts in a seminar here in Lahore on Thursday.

The Centre for Aerospace and Security Studies organised a seminar titled as “Managing Pakistan’s Relations with India”, where renowned foreign policy experts expressed their thoughts on Pak-India relations and its problems. Former foreign minister Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri, President CASS, Air Marshal Asim Suleiman (Retd), and others graced the event.

In his speech, Kasuri emphasized that a climate of hostility and tension was neither in the interest of Pakistan nor of India, and dialogue was the only way forward to solve the contentious issues between the two countries.

Indian PM’s statement

Referring to a statement of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi that he had “resolved the Kashmir problem”, Kasuri affirmed that the Kashmir problem was alive and would remain so, as long as the Kashmiri people refuse to accept the Indian occupation.

In his concluding adress, President CASS Air Marshal (retd) Asim Suleiman said that Pakistan’s desire for good neighborly ties with India on the basis of equality and mutual respect.

He also highlighted the inalienable right to self-determination of the innocent people of Illegally Indian Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK).

He said that ties with India can still improve through uninterrupted and meaningful dialogue, showing flexibility, and building trust.

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