Pakistan, India agree to push talks forward

NEW DELHI: Pakistan and India have agreed to ‘carry forward’ talks aimed at resuming the full-fledged peace dialogue between the arch rivals that was suspended in the wake of the 2008 Mumbai attacks.

Indian foreign secretary Nirupama Rao and her Pakistan counterpart Salman Bashir held talks late Sunday in the Bhutanese capital Thimphu -- the first high-level meeting between the nuclear-armed neighbours since July.

"They agreed on the need for a constructive dialogue between India and Pakistan to resolve all outstanding issues," according to a joint statement that described the discussions as "useful and frank".

"They affirmed the need to carry forward the dialogue process," the statement said.

The meeting failed to produce a date for an expected visit to India this year by Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, who last held talks with his Indian counterpart S.M. Krishna in Islamabad in July.

The talks in Thimphu took place on the sidelines of a South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) conference.