NEW DELHI, April 6: Indian Petroleum Minister Murli Deora has said he will visit Pakistan on April 23 to meet his counterpart Khwaja Mohammad Asif for talks, including the Iran gas pipepline project, a hot potato given severe US opposition to it.

The Hindu reported him as saying on Sunday: “I will be going to Islamabad at the invitation of the Pakistan government to resolve the transit fee issue. I hope to wrap up the talks during the two-day visit and pave the way for putting in place the historic peace pipeline,” Mr Deora was quoted as saying.

The announcement came as India and Turkmenistan signed a bilateral protocol on petroleum cooperation in Ashkhabad where they also held discussions on the alternate gas pipeline project which also involves Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The Hindu report said the issue of transit fee would be the focus of talks between the two countries and it was felt that the issue would be resolved as it requires a political decision.

Any breakthrough issue is likely to pave the way for the much-delayed trilateral talks between Iran, India and Pakistan.

The Indian minister has also received an invitation from Pakistan’s new petroleum minister, Mr Khwaja Asif. Mr Deora was to visit Pakistan in February to hold talks but the trip was cancelled at the last moment.

The issue of ‘transportation fee’ was sorted out by the two governments and now the focus would be on the ‘transit fee’ sought to be levied for gas transported from Iran to the India-Pakistan border.

India and Turkmenistan on Saturday agreed to collaborate in the vital oil and natural gas sector with New Delhi saying the Central Asian state was its ‘natural partner’ to meet its rising energy needs.

The two countries signed a memorandum of understanding that would also allow Indian companies to work with the firms here on several projects that are being planned by hydrocarbon-rich Turkmenistan in oil exploration and setting up of gas pipelines, PTI said.

India thanked Turkmenistan for “the formal support we have received about our membership in the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) pipeline project”.