WASHINGTON: The US has welcomed the bilateral meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif in Ufa, Russia on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit.

"I welcome the meeting that took place earlier today between Prime Ministers Modi and Sharif and their announcement of future engagement between India and Pakistan," State Department Deputy Spokesperson Mark Toner told reporters at his daily news conference yesterday.

The US has also hailed among other things the decision of the two countries to revive their stalled dialogue and to accelerate the trial in the Mumbai attack case.

"We also welcome the announcement that India and Pakistan will discuss a range of bilateral issues, including security, people-to-people ties and expediting the Mumbai trial," he said.

"We support all steps between the Governments of India and Pakistan to strengthen their dialogue and cooperation," Toner said at the top of his daily briefing.