In their first telephonic conversation after the Balakot airstrikes, Prime Minister-elect NarendraModi told Pakistan PM Imran Khan on Sunday that creating trust and an environment free of violence and terrorism was essential for fostering peace and prosperity in the region.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said it was Khan whocalled up Modi to congratulate him on his re-election.
“The Prime Minister thanked the Prime Minister ofPakistan for his telephone call and greetings,” it said.
Recalling his initiatives in line with his government’s”neighbourhood first” policy, Modi referred to his earlier suggestionto Khan to fight poverty jointly, the MEA said.
“He stressed that creating trust and an environmentfree of violence and terrorism was essential for fostering cooperation forpeace, progress and prosperity in our region,” it added.
The telephonic conversation came amid strained bilateralties since nearly three months following the Pulwama attack and India’ssubsequent aerial strikes on a militant training camp in Pakistan’s Balakot.
Khan had also congratulated Modi on Twitter last week afterthe BJP’s massive victory in the general election.
Modi on Thursday led his BharatiyaJanata Party (BJP) to alandmark victory for a second five-year term in office, winning 303 seats inthe 543-member LokSabha.
Reiterating his vision for peace, progress and prosperity inSouth Asia, Khan said he looked forward to working with Modi to advance theseobjectives, Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson Mohammad Faisal said onTwitter.
Khan also expressed his desire for both countries to worktogether for the betterment of their peoples, he added.
Modi and Khan are scheduled to meet at the ShanghaiCooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan next month.
After the election results on Thursday, Khan tweeted in bothEnglish and Urdu: “I congratulate Prime Minister Modi on the electoralvictory of BJP and allies. Look forward to working with him for peace, progressand prosperity in South Asia.”
In April, Khan had said he believed that there might be abetter chance of peace talks with India and settling the Kashmir issue ifModi’s BJP won the general election.
Just a day before the announcement of the poll results,Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi and his Indian counterpartSushmaSwaraj exchanged pleasantries on the sidelines of the SCO Council ofForeign Ministers meeting in Bishkek. Qureshi conveyed to Swaraj Pakistan’sdesire to resolve all issues through dialogue.
The Pakistani foreign minister had said Islamabad was readyto restart talks with the new government in India after the election outcomewas known on May 23. India has told Pakistan that “talks and terrorism” cannotgo hand-in-hand.
Tensions flared up between the two neighbouring countriesafter a suicide bomber of Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) killed 40 CRPFpersonnel in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama district on February 14.
Amid mounting outrage, the Indian Air Force (IAF) carriedout a counter-operation, hitting the biggest JeM training camp in Balakot, deepinside Pakistan, on February 26. The next day, the Pakistan Air Forceretaliated and downed a MiG-21 in an aerial combat and captured an IAF pilot,who was handed over to India.
Meanwhile, the MEA also said Modi received telephone callsfrom former president of the Maldives Mohamed Nasheed and former prime ministerof Nepal Madhav Nepal on his poll victory.
“Former president Nasheed congratulated the PrimeMinister on the historic mandate and noted that the relationship between theMaldives and India had deepened in recent times,” the MEA said.
He stressed the importance of close cooperation to fight theforces of extremism and radicalisation in the region, it added.
On his part, Modi thanked Nasheed for his felicitation andreiterated his commitment to continue fostering a strong, mutually beneficialand all-round partnership between the two countries.
The MEA said Madhav Nepal warmly congratulated Modi onleading his party and alliance to a grand, historic and landslide poll victory.He also expressed the confidence that India’semergence as a front-ranking world power would qualitatively uplift the entireregion.