India will continue with its endeavour to normalise relationship with Pakistan, foreign secretary Ranjan Mathai has said here, stressing that the future of Afghanistan and Pakistan is “inseparable” from the destiny of the country.
“The future of Afghanistan and Pakistan will continue to engage our two countries. Their future is inseparable from the destiny of India and our region, and, therefore, India has a vital stake in their stability and progress,” Mr Mathai told a Washington-based think-tank.
“With Pakistan, we will continue our endeavour to seek a peaceful, cooperative and normal relationship,” he said in his remarks on “Building on Convergence: Deepening the India-US Strategic Partnership” at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).
In his speech, Mr Mathai said over the past year, India and the US have had close consultation and coordination on their shared vision of a stable, democratic and prosperous Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, promising to provide a level playing field to US companies on civilian nuclear deal, Mr Mathai has said India is willing to address their specific concerns within the framework of the law in this regard passed by the Parliament.
“We will provide a level playing field to US companies, and are prepared to address specific concerns of US companies within the framework of that law,” Mr Mathai said in his address at the CSIS.
“We have the reality of our law passed by our Parliament,” Mr Mathai said in his remarks at the eminent think tank.
India and the US, he said, have remained engaged and must now take practical steps to advance this cooperation, as they have done over the past year.
He also expressed hope that the current economic woes in the US would not lead to protectionism and said that concerns of the Indian IT industry over anti-outsourcing measures announced by President Barack Obama recently will be addressed quickly.