India's PM welcomes Pakistan peace proposals

Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh said today that he “welcomed” recent proposals from neighbouring Pakistan for ending their decades-long dispute.

“In the last few days, many suggestions have come and I welcome all of them with an open mind,” Singh said, referring to proposals made earlier this month by Pakistan.

“We can establish peace and tranquility between both nations,” he said during a speech in the northern Indian city of Amristar.

Singh, however, made no direct reference to Kashmir, the divided Himalayan region at the heart of the rivalry between New Delhi and Islamabad – and the subject of the recent Pakistani proposals.

Split between overwhelmingly Hindu India and Muslim Pakistan, Kashmir is claimed by both countries, which have fought two of their three wars over the predominantly Muslim region since independence from Britain in 1947 during the bloody partition of the subcontinent.

Pakistani President Gen. Pervez Musharraf earlier this month said Islamabad was willing to give up its claim to all of Kashmir if India reciprocated and agreed to jointly administer the region, which would be granted a wide degree of autonomy.