Indian official pays visit to Pakistan
India’s prime minister meets Pakistan’s prime minister, sparking hope for a detente between the two nations,
— In AHMEDBAD, INDIA the first visit by an Indian leader to Pakistan in more than a decade, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met his Pakistani counterpart in Lahore on Friday, rekindling hopes for a detente between the rival, nuclear-armed nations.
The visit was unannounced. Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif greeted Modi at the Lahore airport and the men embraced. They then flew by helicopter to Sharif’s private residence in Raiwind, which was decorated for the wedding of his granddaughter.
The friendly greeting belied the bitter tensions between the countries that have worsened in Modi’s 18 months in power. High-level talks were twice called off and violence has flared along the countries’ disputed, heavily militarized border.
Still, the meeting was the latest in a series of signs of a possible thaw in relations.
The two leaders had a brief encounter last month on the sidelines of the United Nations climate change conference in Paris, after which the countries’ national security advisers met in Bangkok for discussions on terrorism, the disputed territory of Kashmir and other issues, officials said.
A meeting between foreign affairs secretaries of both countries is due in January.
Top officials in both countries were surprised by the visit, which had been a closely kept secret.
This meeting will definitely change the atmosphere for discussions between two countries,” said Salman Zaidi, an expert on Pakistan-India relations at the Jinnah Institute, a think-tank in Islamabad. “But the big question still remains: will these pleasantries translate into a structural dialogue process?”
The last Indian prime minister to visit Pakistan was Atal Bihari Vajpayee, in 2004.
Modi stopped in the eastern city of Lahore on his way back from official visits to Russia and Afghanistan.
John Kirby, spokesman for the U.S. State Department, said the visit was a welcome one.
“As we have long said, better relations between neighbors India and Pakistan will benefit the people of the entire region,” he said.
Tarun Vijay, a spokesman for Modi’s Bharatiya Janata party, praised Modi’s visit as a sign of statesmanship.
“This is the best Christmas gift to the mankind which believes in peace and amity,” Vijay said