Discord at Kashmir talks

NEW DELHI - Signs of discord have emerged between India and Pakistan as foreign ministers from the nuclear armed rivals meet to review and advance a peace process that has faltered recently over Kashmir.

Pakistan's Foreign Minister Khursheed Mehmood Kasuri and his Indian counterpart Natwar Singh shook hands and said they were committed to friendly relations before entering two days of talks. But tensions are already emerging.

India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh complained on Saturday that Pakistan had failed to keep a promise to prevent Islamic militants sneaking into Indian Kashmir to join a revolt there, and to scrap guerrilla training camps on its soil.

Pakistan fears that India, which controls the heart of Kashmir, is dragging its feet and is unwilling to engage in a serious dialogue over the region.

But Islamabad's attempt to force the pace and focus attention on Kashmir drew an angry response from India.

"A resolution of the Kashmir dispute alone will guarantee peace and security in South Asia," Kasuri said shortly before leaving Islamabad, adding that Kashmiris also had to be involved.

"We have the genius to resolve this issue," he said. "Most importantly, we need courage and boldness."

Kasuri's remarks were swiftly shot down by Indian foreign ministry spokesman Navtej Sarna.

"There is considerable disappointment here today at the unifocal statement made by the Pakistan foreign minister about India-Pakistan relations prior to his departure from Islamabad," he told reporters late on Saturday.

"This is not in consonance with the spirit in which we have conducted the composite dialogue so far. It also violates Pakistan's own call for a rhetoric restraint regime."

Kasuri tried to calm the waters on Sunday.

"I want to clarify that we are not unifocal," he told reporters. "We want good relations with India. That is in the interests of Pakistan, and I hope India feels the same way."

HOPES DISSIPATE

The neighbours, who were on the brink of war in 2002, embarked on a peace process in January with a new sense of purpose. But some of that hope has dissipated in recent months, especially after Singh's Congress party returned to power in May polls, replacing the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party.

Since then, the two sides have aired decades-old differences over the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir.

"We are not afraid of discussing Jammu and Kashmir, but we do not buy the argument that is the only issue affecting our two countries," Singh told a news conference late on Saturday marking 100 days in power.

"I think we will make progress in dealing with the complex issues ... but progress has to be measured step-by-step."

He said his government expected Pakistan to make "an honest effort" to counter Islamic militants and implement what was promised in January.

"The process can only move forward if terrorism is under control," he said.

Foreign secretaries from both countries said they had agreed to broaden and deepen the peace process after talks on Saturday to pave the way for two days of talks between Kasuri and his Indian counterpart Natwar Singh.

While New Delhi has been trying to dampen expectations of a breakthrough, Pakistan has insisted that the two sides seek a quick result on Kashmir.

For the past two months, officials from both sides have held talks on a range of disputes, encompassing a military standoff on the Siachen glacier, trade and nuclear security.

Indian officials say they have presented 72 proposals to Pakistan for "confidence-building measures".

Some of these are aimed at making a ceasefire line in Kashmir, known as the Line of Control, "softer" - to let Kashmiris cross more easily and reunite divided families.

- REUTERS