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Summary
India is expecting Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi for a very productive meeting with External Affairs Minister S M Krishna.The indication given to me by Qureshi was that sometime in the first quarter of 2011, he would visit New Delhi and we are looking forward to it, Krishna said Friday.Before Qureshi lands in India, the two foreign secretaries will meet and clear the ground for a very productive meeting at the level of foreign ministers.Asked what would be on the table when he meets Qureshi, Krishna said India would like to engage Pakistan to sort out outstanding issues. We would like to engage Pakistan in a dialogue... There is no alternative other than talking and keeping them engaged, thereby sorting out outstanding issues, he said.Krishna rejected the contention that his previous meeting with Qureshi in Islamabad in July last year had failed due to lack of proper ground work by officials of the two countries, arguing that the foreign secretaries of two countries had had interactions before the meeting.On whether the reported confession by RSS leader Aseemanand of his role in the Samjhauta Express blast would be conveyed to Pakistan, Krishna said, All such issues are taken up with respective governments and the ministry will certainly do so.On Pakistan stopping onion export to India via Wagah border, Krishna said New Delhi was in touch with Islamabad on the issue. We have initiated talks and we are hopeful that we will find a solution to this, he said.
