India and Pakistan on
Wednesday discussed the key issue of terrorism, which has dogged the
bilateral ties for years, with New Delhi asking Islamabad not to allow
terrorism from its soil and seeking speedy trial of 26/11 case.
External
Affairs Minister S M Krishna met his Pakistani counterpart Hina Rabbani
Khar for about 30 minutes at the convention centre in Gan, one of the
islands at this atoll.
"Terror
was the main stress of the meeting. Krishna told Pakistan that it
should not allow its soil to be used for terror. To which Khar assured
that her country will not allow its soil to be used for such acts," an
official privy to the meeting told the news agency in Maldives.
The
official said, "India also raised the issue of the 26/11 trial in
Pakistan and Pakistani judicial commission's visit to India in
connection with the Mumbai attack case."
Speaking
to the media after the meeting, Krishna said, "Terrorism continues to
be the focal point of India's dialogue process with Pakistan. So when we
discuss bilateral issues, we certainly factor terror and its various
ramifications".
He was responding to a query if the issue of terror was raised by him during the meet.
Pakistan Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir said such meetings add to the "feel good factor".
"More contacts, more meetings are forward looking. We did discuss the meeting at summit level tomorrow," he said.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is scheduled to meet his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani tomorrow morning.(ST-09/11)
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