<p>In a clear indication of attempts by both India and Pakistan to create a congenial environment for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s likely visit to Islamabad, the two countries on Saturday expressed their desire to liberalise the existing visa regime. <br /> <br /></p>.<p>A formal decision on the liberal visa regime is likely to be announced at the forthcoming home secretary-level discussions in the middle of the year, a joint statement issued by Commerce Minister Anand Sharma and his Pakistani counterpart Makhdoom Mohammad Amin Fahim said here on Saturday.<br /><br />Indian officials, though guarded, agreed that the intention behind increasing bilateral discussions on various issues was to set the stage for the prime minister’s visit. <br />Singh accepted an invitation by Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari to visit Islamabad by year-end last Sunday. However, Singh virtually put a rider on his visit saying that it was incumbent on how the dialogue process moved ahead.<br /><br />The two uneasy neighbours have set a tight agenda beginning with the home secretaries’ meeting, most likely in June, followed by surveyor general-level talks on Sir Creek, defence secretaries’ meet on Siachen and foreign secretaries’ discussions. “Still we have to cover a lot of ground and need to set an agenda before the prime minister visits Pakistan. If the prime minister has to go there, he has to also make a big ticket announcement so that he will have something to show to the domestic audience. There has to be a movement forward on the 26/11 terror attack from the Pak side,” an analyst said.<br /><br />The prime minister was to have visited Pakistan in 2006. But, a series of terror incidents and other issues came in the way of it. The Saturday joint declaration lays emphasis on the growing trade potential between the two neighbours.<br /><br />Both countries are working towards revising the existing bilateral visa agreement that was signed in 1974 to facilitate travel of bona fide businessmen.</p>
<p>In a clear indication of attempts by both India and Pakistan to create a congenial environment for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s likely visit to Islamabad, the two countries on Saturday expressed their desire to liberalise the existing visa regime. <br /> <br /></p>.<p>A formal decision on the liberal visa regime is likely to be announced at the forthcoming home secretary-level discussions in the middle of the year, a joint statement issued by Commerce Minister Anand Sharma and his Pakistani counterpart Makhdoom Mohammad Amin Fahim said here on Saturday.<br /><br />Indian officials, though guarded, agreed that the intention behind increasing bilateral discussions on various issues was to set the stage for the prime minister’s visit. <br />Singh accepted an invitation by Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari to visit Islamabad by year-end last Sunday. However, Singh virtually put a rider on his visit saying that it was incumbent on how the dialogue process moved ahead.<br /><br />The two uneasy neighbours have set a tight agenda beginning with the home secretaries’ meeting, most likely in June, followed by surveyor general-level talks on Sir Creek, defence secretaries’ meet on Siachen and foreign secretaries’ discussions. “Still we have to cover a lot of ground and need to set an agenda before the prime minister visits Pakistan. If the prime minister has to go there, he has to also make a big ticket announcement so that he will have something to show to the domestic audience. There has to be a movement forward on the 26/11 terror attack from the Pak side,” an analyst said.<br /><br />The prime minister was to have visited Pakistan in 2006. But, a series of terror incidents and other issues came in the way of it. The Saturday joint declaration lays emphasis on the growing trade potential between the two neighbours.<br /><br />Both countries are working towards revising the existing bilateral visa agreement that was signed in 1974 to facilitate travel of bona fide businessmen.</p>