’Huge step in marathon strewn with perilous pitfalls’

The Express Tribune

“By agreeing to accept India’s invitation, Sharif and all those who matter have thankfully taken a huge step in what appears to be a marathon strewn with multiple, possibly perilous pitfalls. The take-off, however, appears to be in the right direction… History is certainly on the side of the PMs of the two countries that have remained locked in an acrimonious helter-skelter relationship, often marred or dogged by two fundamental issues… Modi is unbound in the parliament by virtue of his absolute majority, facilitated by the huge Indian industrial complex and business conglomerates… His party apparently vies for a peaceful neighbourhood, and hence the invitation to Nawaz… And, of course, like Modi, the Sharifs, too, are wedded to the idea of economy being central to the survival of a country.”

News International

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“A final decision from Sharif came five days after India sent an official invitation on May 21, giving the Prime Minister here enough time to consult his aides, cabinet members and the Foreign Office… Luckily, hawks like Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar were kept at arm’s length… Except for the fringe and ignorable elements outside the democratic process, like the Punjabi jihadis, especially the Jamaat-ud-Dawa’s Hafiz Saeed who opposes the visit, everyone has rooted for Sharif to go into a meeting with Modi.”