Pakistani Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani and his Indian equivalent, Manmohan Singh, met for close to an hour on an island in the Maldives.
"The next round of talks will be more positive, more constructive and will open a new chapter in the history of both countries," Gilani said to journalists following the meeting, which took place on the margins of a South Asian regional summit. "I can only assure you that I discussed all core issues."
Outstanding topics between the two states include the disputed Kashmir territory, terrorism, the sharing of natural resources and their respective nuclear arsenals. Pakistan and India have gone to war three times since 1947.
New Delhi and Islamabad earlier this year renewed their bilateral peace process after a multiyear hiatus prompted by the 2008 terrorist attacks that killed over 160 people in the Indian city of Mumbai. India blamed Pakistan for not doing enough to target the extremists that operated from its territory.
"We will resume this dialogue with the expectation that all issues which have bedeviled relations between the two countries will be discussed," according to Singh. "The time has come to write a new chapter in the history of the relationship of the two countries." More
