Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

DATE=6/13/05

TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT

TITLE=PAKISTAN/KASHMIR PEACE (L-O)

NUMBER=2-325230

BYLINE=AYAZ GUL

DATELINE=ISLAMABAD

CONTENT=

VOICED AT:

HEADLINE: Pakistan Hopeful of Solution to Kashmir Dispute

INTRO: Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf says that the decades old Kashmir dispute with India can be resolved in "two weeks" if leaders of both countries show sufficient political will. From Islamabad, Ayaz Gul reports for VOA.

TEXT: The Pakistani and Indian leaders have reaffirmed their commitment to their ongoing peace dialogue, raising hopes for a final settlement of their 58-year old territorial dispute over Kashmir, which both countries claim.

Speaking to reporters in Kuala Lumpur, Pakistani President Musharraf again stressed his optimism over the peace process.

/// MUSHARRAF ACT ///

"I think it can be resolved in two weeks actually if there is a will and we sit down and discuss the options and reach an agreement. The most important thing is for the leadership to have the will to reach a conclusion and I see that at this moment the leadership does have the desire and the will.. Therefore I am optimistic that it will be resolved."

/// END ACT ///

President Musharraf says he is confident India and Pakistan will resolve the conflict over the Himalayan glacier of Siachen.

Pakistan and India have been fighting over the glacier, at 22-thousand feet the world's highest battlefield, since 1984 when Indian troops occupied the strategic heights.

On Sunday, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh called for the glacier to be turned into a "peace mountain."

Responding to Mr. Singh's statement, Foreign Ministry spokesman Jalil Abbas Jilani said in Islamabad that a peaceful solution would be possible only when India withdraws from the glacier to pre-1984 positions.

/// JILANI ACT ///

"We hope that the statement (by Mr. Singh) reflects a change of Indian position. We hope that following this statement India would unconditionally withdraw its aggression, once that takes place Siachen would certainly become a mountain of peace."

/// END ACT ///

India has refused to withdraw its forces from the glacier. But in the latest round of talks with Pakistan Indian officials reportedly promised their troops would not take any aggressive action.

The wide-ranging peace dialogue between India and Pakistan began nearly two-years ago, with the aim of settling all outstanding bilateral disputes.

/// OPT ///

The launch of a bus service in April linking the capital cities of Indian and Pakistani Kashmir and a recent visit to Pakistan by separatist leaders from Indian Kashmir are seen as the most tangible outcomes of the current peace process.

/// END OPT ///

Since they gained independence from Britain in 1947, India and Pakistan have fought three wars, two of which were triggered by the Kashmir dispute. (SIGNED)

NEB/HK/AG/MQM/KPD/RH/RAE