New Delhi, May 05: External affairs minister Yashwant Sinha will hold talks with US Secretary of State Colin Powell in Moscow on May 14, in the first face-to-face contact since the latest peace overtures in Indo-Pak relations which are expected to figure prominently.
Both Powell and Sinha, who will be on bilateral visits to Russia around the same time, decided to utilise the opportunity to discuss a host of issues.

Their meeting will take place close on the heels of the visit to India and Pakistan by US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage.
Powell and Sinha have spoken to each other twice since Prime Minister Atal Bihari's peace initiative with Pakistan was announced. Powell had last called up Sinha from Damascus and welcomed Vajpayee's fresh initiative.

An external affairs ministry spokesman told reporters today that details of the Sinha-Powell meeting were being worked out by both sides.

"They will be making use of the opportunity to discuss bilateral relations naturally as well as other developments," he said.
To another question, he said that the Prime Minister's initiative on the Indo-Pak front and developments since then would come up for discussions.

Sinha, who will be on a five-day visit to Russia from May 14, will have wide-ranging discussions with his Russian counterpart Igor Ivanov and is also expected to call on President Vladimir Putin.
Bureau Report