Washington: The Nuclear Security Summit is on in Washington. But another meeting on the sidelines made for interesting headlines. A meeting of the Prime Ministers of India and Pakistan.
Manmohan Singh and Yousuf Raza Gilani met briefly, shook hands and chatted for a few minutes. There was no official meeting scheduled between the two leaders, but it was Gilani who walked up to Singh and initiated the conversation.
This took place at the Obama dinner for all 47 leaders who arrived for the summit. Gilani also sought the US' help in easing ties between India and Pakistan. He also said that Pakistan's nuclear weapons programme was not directed against any country.
"No, we are not competing with anybody. We really want to confine ourselves to minimum deterrence. Talking about Al Qaeda, we do not see any short of those concerns in Pakistan. If there is any actionable intelligence or credible information we are ready to share with the US," said Gilani.
On whereabouts of bin Laden, Gilani said, "certainly he is not in Pakistan and I do not know where he is." Asked how could he be so sure that Laden is not in Pakistan, Gilani said the recent military actions of Pakistan against terrorists in the Swat Valley and other parts of the country were very successful.
"If there would have been any chance, he would have been arrested. May be, I do not know, even if he is alive or not."
Qureshi slams India
But Pak Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi took a dig at India. He said India must display sincerity in resolution of disputes. He said, "India should not encourage arbitration if it does not want to take up issues at international forums."
Talking to media, Qureshi said India wants resort of third country with or without our consent but it must display sincerity and commitment to find a way out to resolve disputes.
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