India and Pakistan fell short of bridging the post-Mumbai divide on Thursday. During the first official talks in 14 months, New Delhi said Islamabad needed to do more about terrorism. Islamabad said it could only do more if the two sides resumed full dialogue. While they agreed to keep channels of communication and Pakistan extended an invitation for another round, no dates were announced. Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao said the talk was in line with “our graduated and step by step approach with modest aims”. However, she said, Pakistan had not done enough about those behind Mumbai. “Pakistan looks forward to reversing the tide of regression that has taken place in its relationship with India,” said Pakistan foreign secretary Salman Bashir. Declining to specify any new anti-terrorist measures by his country, he noted “Pakistan is not desperate” about holding a dialogue. Though Bashir at one point dismissed India’s dossiers on LeT founder Hafiz Saeed “as literature, not evidence”, he later said he had meant this in a legal sense and he was “sorry” for any confusion the expression had caused. The two held over three hours of talks-including an 80-minute one-on-one discussion between the two foreign secretaries.
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