Ahead of Tuesday's Indo-Pak foreign secretary-level talks, Pakistan has said "tangible" progress was necessary during the deliberations as failure to reach any agreement would demoralise people in both the countries.
"We hope that as a result of this meeting we will, in the spirit of Havana Declaration (signed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President Pervez Musharraf), see narrowing down of divergences and building on convergences," Pakistan Foreign Minister Khurshid M Kasuri said.
"The composite dialogue process should be carried forward and it should be ensured that it was not perceived as an exercise in futility. Tangible progress was necessary," he said in an interview published in local daily Dawn on Monday.
"This is essential to keep the morale of the public in place. If much progress will not be achieved then the pro-peace forces on both sides will be demoralised and those not in favour of peace will be strengthened," Kasuri said.
"We are very serious about the composite dialogue and our record speaks for it," he added.
He said the talks, being resumed after a four-month gap following the Mumbai bomb blasts, posed a "major challenge" for the foreign offices of the two countries and both have to "practically" demonstrate the constructive spirit that prevailed in Havana.
Tuesday's talks between the foreign secretaries would also be the first after the Dr Singh-Musharraf meeting in Havana on September 16, where the two sides agreed to exchange "useful ideas" to resolve the Kashmir issue, he said.
The talks aimed at reviewing the third round of the composite dialogue process would be followed by the meeting of the foreign ministers.
The foreign secretaries will look at ways progress could be achieved in areas where forward movement had been scant, he said.
Asked when the meeting of the foreign ministers was likely to take place, Kasuri, who will visit New Delhi on November 26 to attend Panchayat Raj Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar's daughter's wedding, said a decision in this regard would be taken at the foreign secretary-level meeting.
About his visit to New Delhi later this month, Kasuri said it was a "purely private visit" and, therefore, he had not asked for any official meetings.
Asked if he was likely to meet his new Indian counterpart Pranab Mukherjee at the wedding function which was expected to be attended by many ruling Congress party leaders, he said, "Let's see who all are there."
When pressed further on whether there was a possibility of a chance meeting with his Indian counterpart, Kasuri did not rule it out.
Both Kasuri and Mukherjee were in touch and have already exchanged letters, the newspaper said. Kasuri reportedly received a letter from Mukherjee whose tone was "positive" on India-Pak relations.
Earlier, Kasuri sent a letter congratulating Mukherjee on his appointment as the new external affairs minister.
Kasuri and Mukherjee, them holding the defence portfolio, had a brief interaction in April 2005 during President Musharraf's visit to India.
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