Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Tuesday said he
wants to have a live TV debate with Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi to
resolve differences between the two neighbouring countries.

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India and Pakistan have long been rivals of each other
since they became independent nations in 1947. Since then they fought three wars.

“I would love to debate with PM Narendra Modi on
TV,” Khan told Russia Today in an interview, adding that it would be
beneficial for the billion people in the subcontinent if differences could be
resolved through debate.

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India’s Ministry of External Affairs, however, did not
make any comment on Khan’s proposal.

“India became a hostile country so trade with
them became minimal,” Khan said, stressing his government’s policy was to
have trade relations with all countries.

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Imran Khan’s comments came after Pakistan’s top
commercial official Razzak Dawood told journalists that he supported trade ties
with India, which would benefit both countries.

The Pakistan Prime Minister also said that the
regional trading options were already limited, with Iran its southwestern
neighbour, under US sanctions and Afghanistan, to the west, involved in decades
of war.

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At present, Pakistan shares strong economic ties with
China, which has committed billions of dollars for infrastructure and other
projects under its Belt and Road Initiative.

India, on its part, demanded action from Pakistan on
terrorists who freely roam around the country and run terror activities against
India.

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This development came on the eve of Khan’s visit to
the Russian capital of Moscow, where he will meet President Vladimir Putin. It
will be the first visit by a Pakistani leader to Russia in two decades.

The two-day visit for talks on economic cooperation
was planned before the current crisis over Ukraine.

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“This doesn’t concern us, we have a bilateral
relation with Russia and we really want to strength it,” Khan said of the
Ukraine crisis.