Straw praises Indo-Pakistani peace moves

Britain's foreign secretary Jack Straw praised India and Pakistan today for their agreement to resume bus services across the military line that divides Kashmir, and urged the long-time nuclear rivals to find a way to friendship.

He said the decision to restart bus service through the heavily militarised region would help “promote regional stability in south Asia”.

“War and violence never give fruitful results,” he said during a visit to the northern Indian city of Amritsar, where he met Sikh leaders and visited the Golden Temple, their holiest site.

India and Pakistan announced yesterday that bus service across Kashmir would begin in April, the most concrete outcome yet from a year of peace talks.

Kashmir is divided between India and Pakistan but claimed in full by both. The uneasy neighbours have fought two wars for control of the Himalayan region since gaining independence from Britain in 1947.

It was Mr Straw’s sixth visit to India in four years. “I am struck that the bilateral relationship continues to build at an extraordinary pace,” he said.