PM blames Pakistan for failure of talks

The foreign ministerial talks left a sour taste as Qureshi blamed Krishna for being on phone all the time with New Delhi and Union Home Secretary G K Pillai for dragging ISI into the Mumbai terror issue.

Manmohan Singh broke his silence over the talks for the first time on Thursday at a joint press conference with visiting British Prime Minister David Cameron.

“I believe there was agreement on a large number of issues having a bearing on our relationship. The way the talks was handled by Qureshi could have been avoided, as it distracted from the larger agreements reached between the two sides,” he said.

The British Prime Minister, who nearly kicked off a storm by remarking in Bangalore on Wednesday that “we cannot tolerate Pakistan exporting terror”, stuck to his line.

“I think the right thing is to have discussion with Pakistan frankly, clearly and openly. Next week, I will have discussions with the President of Pakistan,” he said.