Yekaterinburg, Russia: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday bluntly told President Asif Ali Zardari to take action to stop terrorism against India emanating from his country's soil as the two decided that their Foreign Secretaries will meet soon to discuss steps taken by Pakistan.
At the first top-level contact since the Mumbai terror attacks in November, the two leaders also decided to meet again in Egypt on the sidelines of NAM Summit next month to take stock of the outcome of the Foreign Secretaries meet.
Setting the tone for the meeting on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit, Singh, shaking hands with Zardari, bluntly told him in front of television cameras that "my mandate is to tell you that Pakistan territory should not be used for terrorism against India." An apparently embarrassed Zardari told the Prime Minister "please let them (media) go" out of the room before they can have detailed discussion.
Briefing the media on the 40-minute meeting, Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon said: "The Prime Minister conveyed to the Pakistan President the full extent of our expectation of strong and effective steps to prevent use of Pakistani territory for terrorism against India."