Pak FS arrives, hopes for ''constructive talks''

New Delhi, Nov 13 (UNI) Pakistan Foreign Secretary Riaz Mohammad Khan arrived here this evening and said he was looking forward to ''very constructive discussions'' with his Indian counterpart Shiv Shankar Menon.

''I am happy to be here. I look forward to very constructive discussions,'' he said immediately after his arrival from Lahore.

The Pakistan Foreign Secretary, who is heading a nine-member delegation, was received at the airport by Mr Menon.

Mr Khan and Mr Menon will hold talks tomorrow and on Wednesday on a host of issues. The discussions will be dominated by the issue of terrorism.

The proposed Joint Mechanism on Terrorism, agreed upon between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf is likely to get shape during the two days of negotiations which are being held after a gap of nearly one year.

The two Foreign Secretaries will review progress on the three rounds of the CDP held so far. These will also signal the initiation of the fourth round of the CDP.

The Pakistani delegation comprises Additional Secretary (Asia Pacific) Akhtar Tufail, Additional Secretary (UN) Tariq Osman Hyder, Director-General (South Asia) Jalil Abbas Jilani, Director-General (UN) and spokesperson Tasnim Aslam, Director (India) Irfan Ahmad, Director (Kashmir Affairs), Mariam Aftab, Director (Foreign ecretary's Office) Moin-ul Haq and Assistant Director (India) Qamar Abbas.

Pakistan's outgoing High Commissioner to India, Aziz Ahmed Khan, and High Commissioner-designate Shahid Malik will also join the delegation in Delhi.

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