Summary Indian premier has not visited Pakistan since coming to power.
UFA (AFP / Web Desk) - India`s Prime Minister Narendra Modi accepted an invitation Friday from his counterpart Nawaz Sharif to attend a regional summit in Islamabad next year in what would be his first visit to Pakistan.
"Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif reiterated his invitation to Prime Minister Modi to visit Pakistan for the SAARC Summit in 2016. Prime Minister Modi accepted that invitation," said a joint statement from the governments after the two leaders met in Russia.
Indian officials had previously refused to confirm Modi`s participation at the next summit of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), usually attended by leaders of eight countries in the region.
While PM Nawaz did attend Modi`s inauguration in May last year, the nationalist Indian premier has not visited Pakistan since coming to power and relations between the two governments have been cool in recent months.
According to a press release, the meeting was held in a cordial atmosphere where the two leaders exchanged views on issues of bilateral and regional interest.
Both leaders agreed that India and Pakistan have a collective responsibility to ensure peace and promote development.
PM Nawaz and Modi condemned terrorism in all its formed and agreed to cooperate with each other to eliminate this menace from South Asia.
They also announced that their respective national security advisors would meet in New Delhi to discuss "terrorism" although they did not set a date for the talks.
And officials responsible for security on both sides of their sometimes volatile border would also meet soon, according to the statement which was read out to reporters in Russia by the two countries foreign secretaries.
It may be mentioned here that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif did not discuss Kashmir issue with the Indian premier.
Modi and Sharif met while attending a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation which is being held in the Russian city of Ufa.
