Pakistan and India would review progress of the on-going dialogue process, said Pakistani Foreign Secretary Riaz Mohammad Khan on Monday.

Khan, who is leading an 11-member Pakistani team in talks with India in New Delhi, said upon his departure: "We will see where we stand and how to push the peace process forward."

The two-day foreign secretary level talks on Jan. 17 and 18 will mark the beginning of the third round of the composite dialogue process.

"The meeting will discuss two main items, the Jammu and Kashmir problem and peace and security," Khan said.

The foreign secretary said that the two sides had completed two rounds of the composite dialogue and the Delhi talks will explore ways on how to push the process.

"The two sides will also touch bilateral matters," he added but gave no details.

Meanwhile, Foreign Office spokesperson Tasneem Aslam on Monday said that Islamabad was hopeful for constructive discussion with India during the third round of composite dialogue in New Delhi.

"The third round of composite dialogue is itself a key development and we hope for positive discussions," the spokesperson who is accompanying the Pakistan delegation told PTV on telephone.

"The Pakistani delegation is going for talks with a positive approach and hopefully the discussion would help indicate the direction of dialogue process in the future," she said.

She said that the issues of Jammu and Kashmir and peace and security including confidence-building measures were on the agenda of the third round.

"We have some proposals and ideas to discuss with the Indian side on these issues," she added.

To a question, she said it would be premature to comment on the expected results of the third round discussion. "When the parties enter into talks, they enter with the positive approach," she said.

The spokesperson added that the discussion would help set the direction of future talks between the two countries.

Source: Xinhua