April 29: The Prime Ministers of India and Pakistan met at the Bhutan House today in Thimphu on the sidelines of the SAARC Summit. The dialogue according to their spokespersons lasted more than expected and was described as comprehensive and friendly and ended on a positive note.

Before they began their bilateral meeting, they were both accorded a warm welcome- one to one- by their Bhutanese counterpart, Lyonchhen Jigmi Y. Thinley. The dialogue covered a wide range of issues of mutual interest.

The Foreign Minister of Pakistan, Shah Mahmood Qureshi described the meeting as positive and a step in the right direction in the right spirit.

He said the leaders agreed to continue the dialogue saying that it is the only way to move forward.

The Indian Foreign Secretary, Nirupama Rao said the meeting was fruitful and added that the two leaders agreed to normalize relations.

She said the channels of cooperation should work effectively to enlarge the constituency of peace in both the countries.

The two leaders also discussed the need to bring to justice the perpetrators of the Mumbai attacks at the earliest.

The Prime Minister of India and Pakistan also discussed on the issue of terrorism.

The Foreign Minister of Pakistan ended the press conference saying that the Thimphu climate and the ambience did matter for the fruitful dialogue.

The two leaders have entrusted the Foreign Ministers and Secretaries of the two countries to work out the modalities for engagement and to meet as soon and as frequently as possible.