India invites Pakistan for talks

India has offered to resume bilateral talks with Pakistan for the first time since the 2008 attacks on the city of Mumbai that New Delhi blames on armed fighters based on Pakistani soil. A senior Indian official said on Thursday that the Indian foreign secretary had invited her Pakistani counterpart to New Delhi. "The meeting may take place later this month," the official said. "Counterterrorism will be raised, as well as other issues that will contribute to creating an atmosphere of peace and stability between the two countries." Pakistan welcomed the offer, but said it sought clarification on the contents of the proposed talks before giving a formal answer. "There are now signals emanating from India that they are willing to talk bilaterally," Shah Mehmood Qureshi, the Pakistani foreign minister, told the Reuters news agency. "We welcome this ... if it leads to resumption of the composite dialogue." India halted peace talks between the two countries after co-ordinated attacks at several Mumbai locations in November 2008 left 166 people dead.