The Asian Age

Pak NSA makes fresh overture for peace with India

- SRIDHAR KUMARASWAM­I

New Delhi: In a second thinly-veiled but rather tentative outreach this time to India within the past eight days after one by Pakistan's powerful Army chief last week, Pakistan’s national security adviser (NSA) Moeed Yusuf has now said his country is hoping for India to create an “enabling environmen­t” for peace, adding that to move forward for peace, one has to be “rational, not ideologica­l”. India had last week put the onus on Pakistan to “create an environmen­t free of terror, hostility and violence” for peace. Despite the pitch for peace, the Pakistani NSA, however, sent confusing mixed signals by continuing to make certain uncharitab­le and negative references to India, accusing it of “being a spoiler in Afghanista­n”.

In a second thinly-veiled but rather tentative outreach this time to India within the past eight days after one by Pakistan’s powerful Army chief last week, Pakistan’s National Security Advisor (NSA) Moeed Yusuf has now said his country is hoping for India to create an “enabling environmen­t” for peace, adding that to move forward for peace, one has to be “rational, not ideologica­l”. India had last week put the onus on Pakistan to “create an environmen­t free of terror, hostility and violence” for peace. Despite the pitch for peace however, the Pakistani NSA sent confusing mixed signals by continuing to make certain uncharitab­le and negative references to India, accusing it of “behaving like a rogue actor” and “being a spoiler in Afghanista­n”. Understand­ably therefore, going by all available indication­s, New Delhi isn’t biting the bait, just yet.

Speaking to the Turkish Anadolu news agency, the Pakistani NSA said, “Pakistan PM’s (Imran Khan’s) number one goal in the region is peace with everybody. ..Can you have economic security without peace in the region? ... If you want peace, we have to move forward. If we want to move forward, everybody has to be rational, not ideologica­l.

 ??  ?? Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra takes a holy dip in Sangam on the occasion of “Mauni Amavasya” during the ongoing “Magh Mela” in Prayagraj on Thursday.
Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra takes a holy dip in Sangam on the occasion of “Mauni Amavasya” during the ongoing “Magh Mela” in Prayagraj on Thursday.
 ?? Moeed Yusuf ??
Moeed Yusuf

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