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Indian, Afghan officials in Pakistan for regional conference

After arriving here, Swaraj said relationship between the two countries should be better and that she will hold talks with Pakistani leaders to find ways to improve bilateral ties.

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“It is due to this realization that Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj is undertaking a visit to Pakistan”, Khursheed Kasuri said while talking to Geo News.

The agenda of the fifth “Heart of Asia” conference, hosted by Pakistan with focus on Afghanistan, also came under discussion during the meeting.

Aziz said the fate of the dialogue with India will be clear only after he held talks with Swaraj.

Swaraj’s visit comes following a meeting between the national security advisers of India and Pakistan in Thai capital Bangkok on Sunday.

Foreign Minister of India Sushma Swaraj reached Islamabad on Tuesday where she will attend the upcoming Heart of Asia conference, ARY News reports.

Swaraj is expected to meet Nawaz Sharif and his adviser on foreign affairs, Sartaj Aziz, on the sidelines of the multilateral conference on Wednesday.

“Talks are the only solution”, the Daily Pakistan quoted Aziz as saying. Swaraj will also meet Prime Minister Sharif on Tuesday, he said.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said it was awaiting the Indian government’s approval of a shortened limited-over series – three one-day and two Twenty20 internationals to be held in Sri Lanka – which it agreed with the Board of Control for Cricket in India last month.

Swaraj will be accompanied by Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar and other senior officials from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) during these meetings.

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In the meeting, the National Security Advisor briefed about his recent talks with his Indian counterpart Ajit Doval in Bangkok, in which the foreign secretaries of both the countries were also present, the statement said. At the same time, he urged the Pakistani armed forces to help the Sharif administration in normalising ties with India, stressing: “We can assume that this round of talks has the blessings of the military”.

The Himalayan region of Kashmir has been divided between India and Pakistan but claimed in full by both since the two countries gained independence from Britain in 1947