Pakistani Ruler Invited to Talks on Kashmir
India invited Pakistani military ruler Pervez Musharraf to peace talks in an unexpected gesture aimed at ending five decades of hostility in Kashmir. Pakistan immediately accepted the offer.
Such talks would be the first between government officials from India and Pakistan since the nations came close to war amid fighting on the Kashmir border in the summer of 1999.
“The prime minister has decided to invite Gen. Musharraf to visit India at his earliest convenience,” Indian Foreign Minister Jaswant Singh said, adding that New Delhi is committed to “peace, dialogue and cooperative coexistence with Pakistan.”
A Pakistani spokesman said Musharraf has expressed “willingness to hold talks with India at any level, any time and at any place.”
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