Expressing his views on bilateral ties of Pakistan and India, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif is hopeful for improvement of relations between Islamabad and New Delhi after the neighbouring nation completes its seven-phase elections commencing on April 19.
Regional arch-rivals — Islamabad and New Delhi — have a long history of strained relations, primarily due to Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) dispute which led to several wars while tensions usually rise on the occasions of countrywide elections in India.
“Our relations with India could be improved after elections there,” the defence minister expressed his views while speaking to reporters outside the Parliament House in Islamabad, adding that Pakistan and India ties have its “own background”.
As the country which borders with China, India, Afghanistan, and Iran witnessed tensions with other neighbours, except for China, following crossborder attacks from Iran and Afghanistan, Asif is hopeful for a turn of event in terms of improvement of bilateral ties with New Delhi after the neighbour completes its upcoming election phase.
It is noteworthy to mention here that India will begin voting in phases starting April 19 to elect a new parliament, the world’s largest election in which nearly one billion people are eligible to cast ballots, Reuters reported.
The election pits two-term strongman Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his regional allies against a bickering alliance of two dozen opposition parties, with surveys suggesting a comfortable win for Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Epicentre of recent wave of terrorism in Pakistan is Afghanistan until the neighbouring country takes decisive action against the banned outfit Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) safe havens there.
The defence minister said that he, along with a high-level delegation, visited Afghanistan to request the Taliban government there to take effective steps to stop terrorism. However, the solution proposed by Kabul was not practically possible, he added.
“Our options are now reducing day-by-day for the neighbour due to fluctuation in Afghan interim government’s attitude towards Pakistan,” Asif said. He added that Pakistan has always stood besides Afghanistan, rendered sacrifices for them, and even fought wars with them.
He stressed treatment of Pak-Afghan border like other borders around the globe which restricts cross-border movement to visa holders under international laws.
