Pak takes up mango diplomacy

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New Delhi: Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has sent a box of mangoes to his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi on Eid even as his forces along the border gave a miss to the customary exchange of sweets with BSF on the occasion. ‘Prime Minister Sharif has sent a box of mangoes to Prime Minister Modi through official channels,’ sources said.
Sharif’s mango diplomacy comes in the backdrop of a row between two countries over ceasefire violations along the Line of Control and International Border in which both sides have suffered casualties. India had warned Pakistan of ‘effective and forceful’ response to unprovoked firing and cross-border terrorism.
Following the row, Pakistani Rangers refused to accept the sweets offered by the BSF on the occasion of Eid last week. Border guarding forces of the two countries have been practising a tradition of exchanging sweets on festivals at the International Border in Jammu and along the Attari-Wagah border in Amritsar in Punjab.
Last year also, Sharif had sent mangoes to Modi and President Pranab Mukherjee which were delivered soon after India withdrew from foreign secretary-level talks.