Monday, April 11 2005 09:07 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: India last night (Apr 10, 2005) said that when Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf meets Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in New Delhi next week, "they can't be talking only on cricket" and it was prepared for a discussion on Kashmir.

"So we presume there will be discussion on a number of other subjects. When India and Pakistani leaders meet, we presume Kashmir will be talked of. We are prepared for a discussion," National Security Adviser (NSA) M K Narayanan told Star News.

"We are really laying down the red carpet for the Pakistani President and we really hope something good will come out. Our Prime Minister is very optimistic," Narayanan said.

Observing that there was a great deal of willingness at least on India's side on what other opportunities were there, he said the Srinagar-Muzaffarababd bus service, flagged off on April 7, was a beginning.

"We are hoping for a number of points in the border where people can come and meet. The whole idea is to make borders not an area of impediment."

"Border are important. They determine sovereignty but that does not mean people can't move across, do business across," he said, adding that there was a great deal of fraternity between Indian Punjab and Pakistani Punjab. "We would like Pakistan to show as much interest in this as we believe we are showing."

Replying to a question whether any agreement was being envisaged during Musharraf's visit, Narayanan said, "When two leaders of this stature meet, there will hopefully be some kind of a joint statement."

"But I don't think there is much scope for an agreement because I don't think we are discussing those kind of issues."

Elaborating on this, he said India's interest was to treat the Pakistani President as one of "our most important guests".

"Whatever he wants, talk to him and see in the process India-Pakistan relations are improved by even some percentage points."

Asked about the growing closeness in relations between Pakistan and China, Narayanan said, "It was our Prime Minister who said that there is a great deal of maturity now in all countries of the world."

"Our relations with China today are perhaps the best it had after the early fifties. We have no problem with China having friendship with Pakistan or with any other country."

But, he said, New Delhi "would naturally be concerned" if there were "some activities" which were antagonistic to India's interests.

"Just because the Chinese Premier goes to Pakistan, is friendly, or goes to Bangladesh, we are not concerned."

On the nuclear issue relating to Pakistan, the National Security Adviser said, "Of course, we are concerned about it. We assume this could figure in the discussions between (visiting Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao) and the Prime Minister (Manmohan Singh)."

"And if the opportunity arises, this may well be discussed but this will not be a problem in relations with China," he said.

Maintaining that India was "strong enough", he however said that New Delhi did not want nuclear proliferation in any form.

"India has an impeccable record...So to that extent anything supplied to other countries in nuclear areas are matter of concern," the National Security Adviser said.

Quoting the Prime Minister, he said India has made one point very clear--that there will be no changes in territory and there will no major, fundamental differences where the lines were drawn.

Recalling the recent meeting between the Prime Minister and Musharraf's mother, son and brother in New Delhi, Narayanan said it was a "good meeting. The President's mother was a charming lady. We invited her to come over. That's the kind of relationship we would like to have with Pakistan. We think we are really one people divided by a border".