US envoy hopeful of S Asia peace

Armitage held talks with Foreign Minister Sinha

US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage has concluded a South Asia tour by saying he is optimistic of peace between India and Pakistan.

Speaking after meeting Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee he said he would like to see both countries live in peace and harmony.

Mr Armitage's trip coincides with a dramatic thaw in relations between India and Pakistan - the two nuclear rivals in the subcontinent.

After talks with Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf on Thursday, Mr Armitage described the rapprochement as an encouraging process.

Correspondents say there has been speculation in South Asia that the United States has been behind the recent improvement in relations between the historic enemies, now both American allies.

In Delhi, Mr Armitage praised Mr Vajpayee's offer of dialogue with Pakistan, describing it as an "act of statesmanship".

"We would like to see two great nations, India and Pakistan, living side-by-side in peace, security and harmony," he said.

Earlier in the day he met opposition leader Sonia Gandhi and top officials including Foreign Minister Yashwant Sinha and Finance Minister Jaswant Singh.

Kashmir

The talks come in the wake of announcements by both India and Pakistan of a series of steps to defuse tensions, particularly over the disputed territory of Kashmir where eight people died in fresh violence on Friday.

Kashmir remains the bone of contention

Police in Indian-administered Kashmir said suspected Muslim rebels killed three activists of the ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP) in two separate incidents.

Indian authorities also said a six-year-old child was killed and three civilians injured in artillery fire by Pakistani troops across the line of control that divides Kashmir between India and Pakistan.

PDP President Mehbooba Mufti urged the separatists to help the latest peace initiative by calling a ceasefire.

"It would help if the gun-wielding young men respond to the new situation by at least announcing a ceasefire as their contribution," she told a news conference.

Earlier this week, India turned down a proposal by Pakistan that they should both get rid of their nuclear arsenals.

The two sides have already said they intend to restore full diplomatic ties. On Friday, Pakistan approved the appointment of a senior career diplomat, Shiv Shankar Menon, as the new Indian high commissioner.

But Delhi said it would consider other suggestions on closer diplomatic ties only after there was evidence that Pakistan was taking firm action against the infiltration of Islamic militants into Indian-controlled Kashmir from Pakistan.

Washington talks

Mr Armitage's tour of the region - which also saw him visiting Afghanistan on Friday - has prompted speculation that the US might have drawn up peace proposals for Kashmir, rather like its so-called "roadmap" for the Middle East.

But the US envoy told the BBC he had no such concrete proposals.

In a related development, India's National Security Adviser, Brajesh Mishra, met his American counterpart Condoleezza Rice and Secretary of State Colin Powell in Washington on Friday - a meeting which was briefly attended by President Bush according to reports.

"They had a very good meeting today of a broad range of issues in US-India relations, but also about the question of India's relations with Pakistan," said State Department spokesman Richard Boucher.