SRINAGAR: Ahead of his visit to Pakistan for secretary-level talks, Indian Foreign Minister S.M. Krishna has said that friendship between the two countries has become inevitable, especially after they have reconciled over several sensitive issues.

Indian news reports said on Thursday that Mr Krishna, speaking on the occasion of inauguration of a passport office in Srinagar, said the ‘acrimonial debate’ and leveling of allegations between Pakistan and India would not help either country and that even global conditions required that both the countries maintained good relations.

But he pointed out that convincing the opposition on such issues was an uphill task.

Praising the efforts made by his Pakistani counterpart Hina Rabbani Khar, he said that the foreign minister, in her last visit, had conveyed the message that Pakistan wanted to move ahead with the bilateral relationship.

Mr Krishna added that Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, on being invited by President Asif Ali Zardari, might visit Pakistan soon.

According to a PTI report, he assured Chief Minister Omar Abdullah that he would take up the issue of cross-LoC trade, including removal of negative list, during his visit.

Mr Abdullah drew Mr Krishna’s attention to the direct impact of Indo-Pak ties on the disputed region. He said that monetary value mismatch had proved to be a complication in cross-LoC trade and requested that a more rudimentary barter format of trade be explored.—Agencies