SOLIDARITY OF THE SOUTH: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh being greeted by Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on his arrival for the Asia-African Summit in Jakarta on Friday. — PHOTO: AP

ON BOARD PM'S AIRCRAFT: In clear and direct language, the Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, said on Friday that if the process of allowing increased interaction between the people of Jammu and Kashmir was to continue, it would "create a climate conducive to the final settlement" of the "territorial dispute" in the divided State.

Speaking to reporters en route to Jakarta, where he will attend the Asian-African Summit 2005 on Saturday, Dr. Singh said his Government had a "hectic last week" as far as diplomacy was concerned. The visits of both the Chinese Premier, Wen Jiabao, and the Pakistan President, Pervez Musharraf, had yielded "solid results," he said. And now there was the prospect of strengthening economic and political ties with South-east Asia as well as with West Asia and Africa, regions with extensive energy resources.

Dr. Singh said he was looking forward to meeting King Gyanendra on the sidelines of the summit in what will be the first meeting between the two leaders since the Nepalese monarch seized direct control of the Government in Kathmandu on February 1.

`Resolution takes time'

Asked for his opinion on Gen. Musharraf's call for soft borders in Jammu and Kashmir, Dr. Singh said he himself had been saying that India and Pakistan have to look at the Kashmir problem in a "different perspective."

He said: "Territorial disputes are never easy to resolve overnight. They take time. But there is a lot we can do together, focussing on the interests of the people, creating an environment where the people of Jammu and Kashmir on both sides of the Line of Control can lead a life of dignity and self-respect. And we can create an environment of freer trade, freer movement."

In saying that a soft border would help India and Pakistan move towards a final settlement of the Kashmir dispute — rather than representing a final settlement by itself — Dr. Singh would appear to have opened the door to alternatives which satisfy both the Pakistani position that the LoC cannot be made permanent and the Indian position that the line cannot be redrawn.

`It is a process'

It was the people of the State who stood to gain the most from this opening up, he said. "I really believe that if this process is allowed to go forward, it will create a climate conducive to the final settlement. But I really do not know today, it is a process, I cannot lay down a timetable — where will it lead us, when will it — but I am convinced that this is a way of looking at the problem which creates a situation where there are no losers or winners. The only gainers are the people of Jammu and Kashmir, and the prospects of reconciliation between the people of India and the people of Pakistan."

Dr. Singh said the "improvement in Pakistan-India relations is uppermost in my mind, and I am glad that this desire has been reciprocated by President Musharraf." He added that it was his "sincere desire to work with the President of Pakistan to carry forward this process in the months that lie ahead."

As for the Hurriyat, Dr. Singh said he had stated on many occasions that he was willing to talk to "any group which wants to talk to me and abjures violence."

"We will be very happy to talk to the Hurriyat if they feel that there are some concerns they have which they would like us to reflect on," he said.

Stand on Nepal

Though India had preferred to postpone the SAARC summit scheduled for early February rather than share a platform with King Gyanendra, the Prime Minister said that the bilateral meeting set for noon on Saturday did not mean there was any change in India's perspective on the developments in Nepal.

"We have always believed constitutional monarchy and multi-party democracy are the two pillars of Nepal ... I am going to a function where the King will also be there. We have never said that we will not talk to our neighbours; we can choose our friends but we have no choice with regard to our neighbours. Geography binds our two countries together and therefore I look forward to meeting His Majesty."

On Friday, King Gyanendra had a 45-minute meeting with the External Affairs Minister, Natwar Singh, in Jakarta. According to official sources, Mr. Singh urged the King to speedily release all the remaining political prisoners, lift the state of emergency and end censorship of the media.

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