Manmohan, Zardari meeting raises expectations

New York, Sep 24 (UNI) Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's scheduled meeting with Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari here has raised expectations of a fillip to the Indo-Pak peace process which has had several hiccups during the past two years following increased terrorist incidents in India and cross-border violations.

The two leaders are meeting here later this evening at 1600 hrs local time (late night IST) on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.

Officials accompanying the Prime Minister on the visit said they had high expectations from the meeting as it would give a major boost to the Composite Dialogue Process (CDP).

Dr Singh refused to disclose the details of the meeting saying it would not be proper to comment before the meeting with Mr Zardari.

He, however, said both countries faced common challenges, including terrorism, and he would tell the Pakistan President that challenges could be converted into opportunities.

Officials said the two leaders would discuss the ''entire gamut'' of bilateral relations,including cross-border terrorism.

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