India, Pakistan agree to harness ties to mutual benefit

New Delhi, Jun 26:Foreign Ministers of India and Pakistan met in Italy's Trieste city today and agreed to harness to mutual benefit the vast potential in relations between the two countries which have remained under ''considerable stress,'' an External Affairs Ministry spokesman said.

External Affairs Minister S M Krishna and Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi who met on the sidelines of the G-8 Foreign Ministers' Conference on Afghanistan, also agreed that both countries had to address centrally why relations between the two neighbours come under stress recurrently.

This is the second high-level contact between the two countries in a span of ten days.

Addressing a joint press conference after the meeting, the External Affairs Minister said he had conveyed to his Pakistani counterpart Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's sentiments that India was ready to meet Pakistan ''more than half way'' to utilise and harness the potential of India-Pakistan relations for mutual benefit.

''Foreign Minister Qureshi and I also agreed in our discussions today of the vast potential that exists in India-Pakistan relations.

I conveyed the sentiments of our Prime Minister that we stand ready to meet Pakistan more than half way to utilize and harness that potential for our mutual benefit. At the same time, we have to address centrally why our relations come under stress recurrently,'' Mr Krishna said.

UNI