India's foreign minister met with President Pervez Musharraf on Wednesday before formal peace talks with Pakistan's newly elected government, officials said. Pranab Mukherjee's meeting with Musharraf in Islamabad came a day after the Indian Foreign Minister said Pakistan's new «democratic environment» could help improve relations between the two neighboring countries. Mukherjee was due to hold formal talks later Wednesday with his Pakistani counterpart, Shah Mehmood Qureshi, the Associated Press reported. The two ministers were expected to discuss proposals for building confidence between the countries. Dawn newspaper reported the two sides were likely to sign an agreement on consular access to prisoners in each other's jails. Pakistan said Tuesday it would release nearly 100 Indian prisoners in a goodwill gesture.
