On Friday, India said that it favoured normal relations with Pakistan provided the atmosphere should be conducive and free from terrorism. Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said, "We want normal relations with Pakistan, is a statement that we have always said. But it has to be in an atmosphere that is conducive and free from terrorism. I think that part is pretty well-known. I really don't need to get into details."
Commenting on a question about the Minister of State for External Affairs Meenakshi Lekhi slamming Pakistan for speaking on the Kashmir issue at the CICA summit, Bagchi said that her intervention has been made public and he won't make any further comment on that as India has made its position clear on terrorism emanating from Pakistan.
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For the unversed, yesterday during the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA) summit, MoS Lekhi slammed Pakistan and said that Islamabad has misused the platform for propagating its false and malicious propaganda against India and advised the neighbouring country to set its house in order instead of lecturing the global community.
Underlining that Pakistan remains the global epicentre of terrorism, Lekhi said it should cease cross-border terrorism against India.
Earlier, while addressing the sixth CICA summit, Pakistan's PM mentioned Jammu and Kashmir and said that the onus remains on India to take necessary steps to engage towards result-oriented solutions.
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The 6th Summit meeting of the Conference of Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA) is being held at Astana. As one of the founding members of CICA, India has supported CICA's initiatives and participated in various CICA activities.
CICA is a multi-national forum for enhancing cooperation toward promoting peace, security, and stability in Asia It is a forum based on the recognition that there is a close link between peace, security, and stability in Asia and the rest of the world.
