The foreign ministers of India and Pakistan spoke Wednesday of
entering a new era in relations between their nuclear-armed nations,
after holding their first meeting since resuming bilateral peace talks
this year.
The two agreed to work more closely in fighting
terrorism in the region and to easing commerce and travel across the
U.N.-drawn Line of Control dividing their nations.
The Himalayan
territory of Kashmir — a major source of tension that fueled two of
three wars fought by the rivals since 1947 — will continue to be
discussed "with a view to finding a peaceful solution," Indian Foreign
Minister S.M. Krishna said. Both nations claim the whole territory now
split between them and maintain heavy deployments along the border.
Pakistan's
newly installed foreign minister, Hina Rabbani Khar, had raised
eyebrows in India by meeting Tuesday night with Kashmiri separatists,
who openly oppose India's heavy-handed rule and argue Kashmiris should
vote themselves to decide the territory's final status. India has
refused any such referendum, accusing Pakistan of fomenting conflict by
arming and training rebels. Pakistan denies this and says it provides
only moral and diplomatic support, backing the call for
self-determination.
Nevertheless, the two sides described their
talks Wednesday as constructive and cordial, agreeing on several
measures toward improving life for Kashmiris, including increasing the
number of cross-border trading days from two to four, and expediting
travel permits, including for tourism and religious pilgrimage.
They
discussed security cooperation, and reiterated their commitment to
fighting terrorism with the aim of stabilizing the region.
"This
is indeed a new era of bilateral cooperation between the two
countries," Khar said after the talks. "There has been a mindset change
in the people of the two countries that we must acknowledge."
Krishna said that, though challenges lie ahead, "I can confidently say that relations are on the right track."
The
meeting was a major milestone in the new round of peace talks that
began in February. India suspended an earlier round of talks after 10
Pakistani-based gunmen laid siege to the city of Mumbai in 2008,
killing 166 people. India has argued that Pakistani intelligence helped
plan that attack and that Pakistan has not done enough to crack down on
those behind it.
Despite a July 13 triple bombing in Mumbai that
killed 20 people, neither side backed away from the new round of talks.
India's investigation into that attack has focused on a shadowy
domestic terror group reportedly linked to Pakistani militants, but top
government officials have been reluctant to point fingers, calling for
patience as the investigation proceeds.
The two countries'
foreign ministers last met a year ago in Islamabad in a tense meeting
that erupted into accusations that both sides were fomenting terror
attacks on each other. Since February, however, the two sides have
discussed a range of issues including terrorism threats, cooperation on
the Mumbai investigation and Kashmir. AP
