Islamabad: In a positive response to Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee's fresh offer of friendship, Pakistan on April 22 said it was ready to nominate a senior official to discuss the agenda for an "unconditional and meaningful" dialogue if India was "serious".

"If India is indeed serious, government of Pakistan is ready to nominate a senior official to discuss the agenda for talks," a Pakistan Foreign Office statement said, expressing Islamabad's willingness to take the first step.

Stating that Pakistan welcomed the "positive elements" of Vajpayee's recent speech in Srinagar, the statement said Islamabad "believed in goodwill and honest intentions. All issues can be resolved peacefully through a dialogue between India and Pakistan".

"Pakistan places a high priority on reducing tension and normalisation of relations with India. We believe that the only way forward in the interest of the over a billion people is through sincere, unconditional, meaningful and sustained dialogue addressing the key issues bedevilling relations between the two countries and poisoning the atmosphere for peace and security in the region," it said.

PTI