Pakistan's PM optimistic about talks with India

By Augustine Anthony

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistani Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani set off for an international conference in Egypt on Tuesday, saying he hoped discussions there with his Indian counterpart would get peace talks back on track.

India put a pause on talks with old rival Pakistan after a militant attack on Mumbai in November in which 166 people were killed.

India said the assault was carried out by Pakistani militants who must have had help from Pakistani security agents. Pakistan has denied any involvement by state agencies and says it will prosecute militants suspected of involvement.

Gilani is due to meet Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the margins of a Non-Aligned Movement summit in Sharm-el-Sheikh in Egypt. Their top diplomats will meet there on Tuesday.

Pakistan wanted cordial relations with all its neighbours, Gilani told reporters before his departure.

"I am sure that such interactions would be really beneficial for the country," he said, referring to the meetings in Egypt.

The nuclear-armed neighbours launched a "composite dialogue" covering all of their disputes in early 2004 after nearly going to war for a fourth time since 1947.

Gilani said the two countries had been "moving in the right direction" until the Mumbai attack and the pause India put on the talks had only benefited the terrorists.