Pakistan's new Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi yesterday extended the hand of friendship to India by offering "uninterrupted" dialogue to resolve all the outstanding issues, saying it is the "only wise course" as the two countries cannot afford any "adventurism". Ties between India and Pakistan nosedived following a spate of terror attacks on Indian military bases by Pakistan-based terror groups since January 2016.

India has made it clear that it will not hold dialogue with Pakistan as terrorism and talks cannot go hand-in-hand. Qureshi, who was sworn-in as Pakistan's Foreign Minister by President Mamnoon Hussain today, addressed the media soon. Qureshi was the foreign minister from 2008 to 2011 under the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) government when the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks took place. He was in New Delhi when 10 Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists attacked India's financial capital. The new foreign minister said Pakistan wants to rebuild ties with eastern and western neighbours and create peace in the region. He said Pakistan wants to resolve all issues with India through talks.