Pakistan's foreign ministry has condemned the terror attack on Indian Air Force station in Pathankot and said it is "committed" to join hands with India to eliminate terrorism.
Pakistan remains committed to partner with India and other countries in the region to eradicate menace of terror-Pakistan Foreign Ministry
— ANI (@ANI_news) January 2, 2016
However, the audacious terror attack on an Indian Air Force station in Pathankot, Punjab, in the wee hours of Saturday that left three Indian soldiers dead, could well derail the Indo Pak peace process, including talks to enhance trade, notwithstanding External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj's visit to Islamabad early last month and Prime Minister Narendra Modi's suprise visit to Lahore last Friday.
Of the three Indian soldiers, two were Air Force personnel and one was a Garuda commando.
Telephone calls intercepted by Indian intelligence agencies indicate that one of the terrorists spoke to his mother in Pakistan, who asked to "have food before dying."
A report said that the attack was planned by Pakistan's intelligence agency, the Inter Services Intelligence, or ISI, during a meeting with Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) and Hizbul Mujahideen leaders.
The fierce encounter has resulted in the elimination of at least four terrorists, while reports say that a fifth terrorist has also been killed.
The attack followed the hijacking of a Punjab police SP Salwinder Singh's official car on Thursday. After assaulting him, they threw him out of the car but took away his cellphone, which they used to talk to their handlers in Pakistan.
A team of NIA has reached the terror attack spot to take stock of the situation.
#Pathankot attack can be an attempt to sabotage Pak-India dialogue. Spoilers & detractors are trying to drive a wedge b/w the 2 countries
— Hina Butt Hayat (@hinaparvezbutt) January 2, 2016
K C Singh, former diplomat and strategic affairs expert, hoped the Pathankot terror attack does not affect the dialogue process.
#PathankotAttack This shouldn't derail dialogue unless aid&abetment by Pak state is traced. If so Pak shouldn't go into automatic denial.
— K. C. Singh (@ambkcsingh) January 2, 2016
Just a couple of days ago, on 31 December, 2015, former Pakistani High Commissioner to India Aziz Ahmed Khan told a Pakistani publication that (improved) trade relations between India and Pakistan won't be detrimental to the economic interests of Pakistan.
He made his comment while addressing a round-table talk on Indo-Pakistan relations, reported ANI.
The bilateral trade between the two countries has been modest. In 2012-13, exports from India stood at $2 billion, while India imported goods worth $541 million from Pakistan, clearly showing that the trade is skewed towards India.
The bilateral trade for the first six months of FY2014 was $1.04 billion, with India's exports at $879 million, according to the information available on the website of Indian High Commission to Pakistan.
The terror attack could also impact the four-day "Indian Expo" to be held in Islamabad sometime in March this year.
The expo will have about 100 stalls showcasing Indian engineering goods, machinery and food products, and will be organised by the Delhi-based PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Modi had met Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif at Sharif's farmhouse Raiwind, on the outskirts of Lahore.
