New Delhi: In an indication that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh may travel to Pakistan in the near future, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee today hoped that dates for the visit would be finalised "shortly".

Addressing a joint press conference with his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mahmood Qureshi after their talks here, Mukherjee said "the Prime Minister has accepted the invitation and we are working out dates of the visit as per the mutual convenience.

I do hope that shortly we will be able to finalise the dates (of the visit)."

Earlier, Qureshi said Pakistan is looking forward to the visit.

He said the visit would be significant as it would help the ongoing peace process.

Contending that India and Pakistan have got a "unique opportunity" to build ties, Qureshi said the "political environment" is right in both the countries to make the ongoing dialogue process "result-oriented".

Source : PTI