News
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Pakistan, India promise ‘new era’ of cooperation
Relations back on track
* Both countries agree to work more closely in fighting terrorism and to ease commerce and travel across LoC
* Agree to explore dialogue on nuclear issues
* Kashmir will continue to be discussed ‘with a view to finding a peaceful solution’
* Khar says peace dialogue was now an ‘uninterruptible’ process
NEW DELHI: India and Pakistan’s foreign ministers insisted relations were back on track Wednesday after peace talks that highlighted a “new era” of cooperation over the ruptures of the past.
Although their meeting in New Delhi produced little in the way of substantive agreements, the tone was one of forward-looking optimism that acknowledged a joint responsibility to bring stability to South Asia. It was the first meeting of the arch-rivals’ foreign ministers for a year, and followed the formal resumption in February of the comprehensive peace dialogue suspended by India after the 2008 Mumbai attacks.
After the talks, Indian Foreign Minister SM Krishna said ties were back “on the right track,” while his Pakistani counterpart Hina Rabbani Khar spoke of a “mindset change” that had ushered in a “new era of cooperation”. “We have some distance to travel, but with an open mind and a constructive approach ... I am sure we can reach our desired destination of having a friendly and cooperative relationship,” Krishna said.
Khar said the peace dialogue was now an “uninterruptable” process that both countries were committed to taking forward. “A new generation of Indians and Pakistanis will see a relationship that will hopefully be much different from the one that has been experienced in the last two decades,” she said. A joint statement outlined the commitment of both sides to fight militancy, boost trade and keep the peace process going.
The pre-talks atmosphere had been soured by Khar’s decision to meet Kashmiri separatist leaders immediately after her arrival in New Delhi on Tuesday. A senior Indian government source said the meeting was “not a good idea at all” and served “no useful purpose.” But Pakistani Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir played down the issue, saying it had done nothing to cloud the Khar-Krishna meeting.
Both foreign ministers stressed the role constructive ties between New Delhi and Islamabad would play in ensuring peace in the wider South Asia region. The two agreed to work more closely in fighting terrorism and to ease commerce and travel across the Line of Control dividing. They also agreed their countries’ should explore dialogue on nuclear issues beginning in September — marking the first time they might share nuclear information since the late 1990s when both were conducting nuclear tests.
The Himalayan territory of Kashmir — a major source of tension that fuelled two of three wars fought by the rivals since 1947 — will continue to be discussed “with a view to finding a peaceful solution,” Krishna said. Krishna said that he was “satisfied at the progress achieved” in the talks held today with his Pakistani counterpart. The Indian foreign minister said, “We have reaffirmed our commitment to resolve all outstanding issues through a comprehensive, serious and sustained dialogue.” agencies
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk