Pakistan urges India to take decision on IPI pipeline quickly

New Delhi, June 27 : Reviving the hopes of proposed Iran Pakistan India (IPI) gas pipeline which was relegated to backburner after India quitted the negotiations in August 2007 over transit fee demanded by Pakistan, visiting Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has urged India to take a quick decision on the proposed peace pipeline.

Qureshi said, "Energy crisis in both the countries have gone berserk, the amount of subsidies we are paying is affecting our fiscal conditions, this pipeline will mitigate our problems."

Mukherjee also responded positively and said, "It is possible to resolve technical, economical and security issues related to the pipeline."

Qureshi, who is also holding the petroleum portfolio later called on Union Petroleum Minister Murli Deora.

He told reporters that both India and Pakistan have resolved all bilateral commercial issues, impeding implementation of 7.4 billion dollar gas pipeline from Iran and will jointly address Tehran's demand for price revision.

Oil Secretaries of the two countries will now meet in Madrid, to carve out a strategy to deal with Iran's insistence on a price revision clause in rates already agreed by the three nations.

Pakistan's foreign minister has also assured India for a full proof security of the multi billion gas pipeline.

The foreign ministers of India, Pakistan and Iran are also expected to meet in Tehran next month where they will attend the ministerial meet of Non-Aligned Movement (NAM).

IPI is likely to be discussed on the sidelines of the meet.

ANI