NEW YORK, 25 September 2004 — The leaders of India and Pakistan hailed a new chapter in bilateral ties following peace talks yesterday in New York that included discussions on their bitter dispute over Kashmir.
“I sincerely believe today is a historic day. We have made a new beginning,” said Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as he addressed reporters with Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf after their hourlong, one-on-one summit.
“I feel confident that despite the difficulties on the way, I and President Musharraf will together work and succeed in writing a new chapter in the history of our two countries,” he added.
It was the first meeting between the two South Asian leaders since Manmohan became prime minister following his Congress party’s surprise election victory in May.
A carefully worded joint statement read by Musharraf said the two sides had agreed to explore possible options for a peaceful negotiated settlement of the Kashmir dispute “in a sincere spirit and purposeful manner.”
The two leaders also agreed that all confidence-building measures under discussion between their two governments should be implemented in an attempt to normalize relations.
The discussions, which were described as “constructive and frank,” also touched on a proposed $3.5 billion pipeline designed to transfer gas from Iran to India through Pakistan.
“I hope this augurs well for the future of Indo-Pakistan relations,” Musharraf said after reading the joint statement, in which both leaders reaffirmed their commitment to pursuing the dialogue between the nuclear-armed rivals.
Manmohan and Musharraf had originally planned to brief the press separately, and officials from both sides said their joint appearance and the agreement on a joint statement was a sign that the talks had gone as well as could be expected.
The meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly was aimed at injecting some momentum into a peace process that has made little progress since Musharraf met with Manmohan’s predecessor Atal Behari Vajpayee eight months ago.
Negotiations on the gas pipeline began in 1994 but little progress has been made because of the volatile nature of the bilateral relationship.
“It was felt that such a project could contribute to the welfare and prosperity of the people of both countries, and should be considered in the larger context of expanded trade and economic relations,” the joint statement said.
