Should avoid hatching conspiracies against each other: Sharif on India-Pak ties

Islamabad: Pakistan and India should have friendly and good neighbourly relations and avoid hatching conspiracies against each other, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has said.

Sharif told reporters accompanying him on his visit to Turkey that even during the election campaign in Pakistan, his party did not adopt the policy of "India bashing" and ended this negative tradition.

"We [Pakistan and India] should maintain good relations and avoid involving in conspiracies against each other," he said, without elaborating.

India and Pakistan relations have been strained for the past over a year. The bilateral ties nosedived particularly after an attack on Indian Army base in Uri on September 18 last year by terrorists from across the border. Nineteen Indian soldiers were killed in the attack.

Ten days later, India conducted "surgical strikes" on terrorist launch pads in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir as a response to the Uri attack.

Sharif said Pakistan was grateful to Turkey for its support on the Kashmir issue, according to a report in Dawn.

He also expressed gratitude for Turkey's stance on Pakistan's inclusion in the elite Nuclear Suppliers Group, which India is also vying.

Talking about recent incidents of terrorism in the country, Sharif said some elements who were upset with the progress of Pakistan were behind the current spate of terror incidents. He expressed the government's resolve to eliminate terrorism at all costs.

"With our firm resolve, we will defeat those who are not digesting Pakistan's success on different fronts," he said, adding the involvement of a foreign hand in terror activities in Pakistan could not be denied, according to the report.