§ Mr. Jim CunninghamTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the relations between India and Pakistan, with particular reference to Kashmir. [175618]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienI welcome the recent public statements by the new Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and External Affairs Minister Natwar Singh confirming their commitment to strengthen, widen an I deepen India's bilateral relations, and to continue the peace process with Pakistan. The Pakistani government has also reaffirmed publicly their continued commitment to improving relations with India and the peace process. We hope the Indian and Pakistani governments will continue to build confidence through peaceful engagement including through early rescheduling of the postponed talks on nuclear Confidence Building Measures and the Muzaffarabad Srinagar bus link. We hope that they will not be diverted by the terrorist acts of those seeking to undermine the process, such as the appalling attack on the Indian Border Security Forces that left 30 dead on 23 May. We hope that this process will, in time, lead to the resolution of all their outstanding differences, including over Kashmir.