Summary "I have come with a message to move forward", says Sushma Swaraj in Islamabad.
ISLAMABAD (Web Desk) - In a bid to mend relations between Pakistan and India, Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will meet Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his adviser on foreign affairs Sartaj Aziz on Wednesday.
Sushma arrived in Islamabad on Tuesday on a two-day official visit to attend the Heart of Asia 5th Ministerial Meeting on Afghanistan.
In her arrival statement, the Indian FM expressed optimism and desire to improve ties which have witnessed strain in the past few months, maintaining the effort will be to carry forward the engagement.
She said relationship between the two countries should be better and that she will hold talks with Pakistani leaders to find ways to improve bilateral relations.
"I have come with the message that ties between the two countries should be good and move forward," said Swaraj.
EAM @SushmaSwaraj makes arrival statement in Islamabad pic.twitter.com/gMPn3L3D57
— Vikas Swarup (@MEAIndia) December 8, 2015
Later in the night, Sushma attended a dinner hosted by Aziz for the heads of delegates participating in a multilateral conference on Afghanistan.
The fifth Heart of Asia conference, an annual gathering of Asian and other countries, is aimed at enhancing cooperation for countering security threats and promoting connectivity in the region.
The high-ranking delegations from 14 participating states, 17 supporting countries and 12 international and regional organisations are participating in the two-day conference.
Sushma Swaraj’s visit comes after the collapse of talks in August that raised questions about the ability of the neighboring countries to overcome animosity that has festered since their independence from British rule almost seven decades ago.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Sharif resumed high-level contacts with a brief conversation at climate change talks in Paris last week and their national security advisers met in Bangkok on Sunday.
Indian Foreign Minister’s visit comes three years after former external affairs minister SM Krishna travelled to Islamabad in 2012 when the countries also inked a visa liberalisation pact.
