India has other priorities than dialogue with Pakistan: Shah Mehmood Qureshi

Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi Friday said India has "priorities other than dialogue" and alleged that there is a group in New Delhi that does not want talks to happen, after New Delhi called off a meeting between him and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj in New York, according to a media report.

Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi. AFP Photo

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi on Friday said India has "priorities other than dialogue" and alleged that there is a group in New Delhi that does not want talks to happen, after New Delhi called off a meeting between him and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj in New York, according to a media report. India cited the "brutal" killing of three policemen in Jammu and Kashmir as well as the release of postal stamps "glorifying" Kashmiri militant Burhan Wani for cancelling the meeting between Swaraj and Qureshi on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York this month. The Express Tribune quoted Qureshi as saying that India has not responded positively to Pakistan's invitation for dialogue. "It seems that India is already preparing for its elections due in the country next year," he said. "Pakistan had asked for the talks in the larger interest of the region" he said. Qureshi said that it seems that "India has priorities other than dialogue", adding there is a group in the New Delhi that doesn't want talks to take place. He went on to say that if India doesn't want dialogue, then Pakistan also won't be in a haste either, " the Pakistani newspaper quoted Qureshi as saying. But, he reiterated that dialogue is the only way to come to the resolution of any issue, the report said. Announcing the cancellation of the New York meeting, External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said in New Delhi that the incidents "exposed" the "true face" of Pakistan's new Prime Minister Imran Khan to the world as well as Islamabad's evil agenda behind the proposal for talks. "The latest brutal killings of our security personnel by Pakistan-based entities and the recent release of a series of 20 postage stamps by Pakistan glorifying a terrorist and terrorism confirm that Pakistan will not mend its ways," Kumar said. He noted that "two deeply disturbing developments have taken place" since yesterday's announcement of a meeting between the foreign ministers of India and Pakistan in New York later this month. "In view of the changed situation, there will be no meeting between the Foreign Ministers of India and Pakistan in New York," he said. Kumar said talks with Pakistan in such an environment would be "meaningless"