Former Pakistan Foreign Minister Khurshid Mahmood Kasuri recalled memories of his association with late Indian Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh, who died in Delhi on Thursday night.
In an interview with PTI in Lahore on Friday, Mr Kasuri said Dr Singh will be remembered in history as a person who dedicated himself to improving bilateral relations between the two countries.
Mr Kasuri, 83, who served as Pakistan’s foreign minister from November 2002 to November 2007, credited Singh for creating a conducive environment across the SAARC region.
He said this was best exemplified by Mr Singh’s statement that “he was looking forward to the day when it would be possible to have breakfast in Amritsar, lunch in Lahore and dinner in Kabul”.
Mr Kasuri said he was fortunate to be part of a process that led to unprecedented progress during peace talks between the two countries.
He said that people-to-people contacts increased significantly during Mr Singh’s tenure as Prime Minister, resulting in mutual trust between the two governments.
Mr Kasuri said it also helped him outline a possible framework for resolution of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute.
He said that although this process had started when the then President of Pakistan Pervez Musharraf and India’s Atal Bihari Vajpayee led the two respective governments, there was no doubt that Dr. Manmohan Singh had taken the lead in taking this process forward. I put my heart and soul into it.
Mr Kasuri recalled that Mr Singh had expressed a strong desire to visit his birthplace Gah, located in Chakwal district of Punjab, Pakistan.
He said he assured Mr Singh that he would be warmly welcomed in Pakistan.
Mr Kasuri expressed hope that one day it would be possible for the late Prime Minister’s wife Gursharan Kaur and other members of her family to visit Mr Singh’s birthplace.
Mr Kasuri expressed his heartfelt condolences to his wife and other family members as well as the people of India.
Mr Singh, the architect of India’s economic reforms, died in Delhi on Thursday night. He was 92 years old. He is survived by his wife and three daughters.
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