Efforts on to fix Saarc date

On Bangladesh, a senior government official said, India is keen on maintaining friendly ties with all its neighbours and was hopeful of finding ways to improve ties through diplomatic efforts.

‘Central Asia neighbour too’

MOSCOW: PM Manmohan Singh sought to assure Central Asian countries Tajikistan and Kazakhstan on Sunday that India treated them as part of its extended neighbourhood and was willing to assist them overcome challenges they faced.

In his first round of bilateral meetings with the top leaders of these two countries, Singh tried to address their concerns in infrastructure development by offering expertise and assistance. The MEA spokesperson said, Tajikistan President Emomali Rahmonov identified road building and hydroelectric power in this regard. The PM conveyed that India had sufficient expertise in generating hydroelectric power and would grant all assistance. Both sides agreed to revive a joint commission that had not met since 2001. Similar issues came up with Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev, who also agreed to extend cooperation in identifying projects for greater Indian participation in the hydrocarbon sector.