Top Indian diplomat to visit Islamabad on March 3-4: Pakistan

Pakistan announced on Wednesday that a top Indian diplomat will pay a two-day visit from March 3-4 which will be the first ever high level contact in seven months.

India abruptly canceled foreign secretary-level talks in August last year because Pakistan High Commissioner to India Abdul Basit met Kashmiri separatist leaders.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had told his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif over the phone this month that he would send his foreign secretary to Islamabad to "push bilateral agenda ".

"Pursuant to the Prime Minister's India call to the Prime Minister on 13 February, 2015, the Indian Foreign Secretary Mr. S. Jaishankar would visit Pakistan on 3-4 March, 2015," the Foreign Ministry said.

Jaishankar would hold meetings with his Pakistani counterpart Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tasnim Aslam said in a statement.

In New Delhi, Spokesperson of the External Affairs Ministry Syed Akbaruddin said on Tuesday Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar will travel to Pakistan in March. However, he did not reveal the exact dates.

The spokesperson said the visit would be part of a trip to all member countries of a regional bloc, the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).

SAARC groups Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

Both sides are expected to use the visit as an opportunity to discuss the revival of the official dialogue process.

Akbaruddin said on his Facebook page "We stand ready to talk with Pakistan in accordance with the Simla Agreement on all issues including Jammu and Kashmir."

Pakistan insists that India should take the initiative to resume the "Composite Dialogue" as it had unilaterally suspended the process. Endi