This Article is From Mar 17, 2016

Sushma Swaraj To Raise Pathankot Issue With Pakistan's Sartaj Aziz

Sushma Swaraj To Raise Pathankot Issue With Pakistan's Sartaj Aziz

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj with her Pakistani counterpart Sartaj Aziz during a dinner at the SAARC Ministerial meeting in Pokhara, Nepal. (PTI photo)

Pokhara, Nepal: India is set to raise the issue of the Pathankot terror attack with Pakistan and seek information about action taken by it as External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj meets with her Pakistani counterpart Sartaj Aziz in this resort town of Nepal today.

The two are expected to meet around 2:30 pm (local time), which would be the first time they come face-to-face formally after the January 2 attack on the key Indian Air Force base.

Incidentally, both Mr Aziz and Ms Swaraj met this morning over breakfast at the Fishtail hotel on Fewa river in Pokhara ahead of the 37th SAARC Council of Ministers Meeting.

The two, who were again seated together like at the dinner last night, even went to the side and had nearly five minutes of a one-on-one conversation after the breakfast.

Today's formal meeting was sought by the Pakistani side to extend an invitation to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend the SAARC Summit which is being hosted by Pakistan in November.

Mr Aziz had yesterday said he is ready to talk about all issues that will be raised by Ms Swaraj.

Highly-placed government sources told news agency Press Trust of India, that India will seek to gain "knowledge" about the action taken by Pakistan against the perpetrators of the deadly attack on the IAF base in Pathankot.

Both the Ministers and their Foreign Secretaries have met informally at least five times.
 
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