Jilani may lay ground for future government particularly on how to proceed with India
\nISLAMABAD
\nPakistan\u2019s new Foreign Minister, who was once expelled from India, is in favour of reviving the Musharraf-Manmohan peace plan in order to end hostilities between the two nuclear-armed neighbours.
\nJalil Abbas Jilani on Friday returned to the Foreign office but this time as caretaker Foreign Minister. Jilani served as foreign secretary of Pakistan and Pakistan\u2019s Ambassador to important capitals including the US and the EU. Jilani was also the deputy high commissioner in New Delhi in 2003, when the Indian government declared him persona non grata after accusing him of funneling funds for separatist activities in Jammu and Kashmir.
\nBeing the interim foreign policy chief, he may not have enough time and limited mandate to change the course of Pakistan\u2019s foreign policy but he may lay ground for the future government particularly on how to proceed with India.
\nSources close to Jilani told that he is in favour of improving ties with India. The new Foreign Minister told The Express Tribune on Thursday that improvement in the relationship with India was contingent upon resolution of all outstanding issues including the longstanding issue of Jammu and Kashmir. But his public position aside, sources said Jilani was of the view that Pakistan should explore options paving the way for resurrecting the peace process during Musharraf-Manmohan time. The foreign minister believes that dialogue between the two countries between 2004 and 2007 could be revived provided both sides showed the political will and resolve.
\nThat peace process was considered the most sustained efforts by the two countries to resolve their festering disputes including Jammu and Kashmir.
\nIn fact extensive back channel talks at the time between the two countries led to the potential road map for the resolution of the Kashmir dispute.
\nThen Foreign Minister Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri was on record as saying that both sides even shared non-papers on the Kashmir resolution.
\nThe two countries were believed to be close to signing the Siachen and Sir Creek agreements. It was said the agreements were to be signed during the long pending visit of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Pakistan in early 2007.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Jilani may lay ground for future government particularly on how to proceed with India ISLAMABAD Pakistan\u2019s new Foreign Minister, who was once expelled from India, is in favour of reviving the Musharraf-Manmohan peace plan in order to end hostilities between the two nuclear-armed neighbours. Jalil Abbas Jilani on Friday returned to the Foreign office but […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-350133","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-top-news"},"yoast_head":"\n