TOKYO, April 25 Kyodo selecteded ...

TOKYO, April 25 Kyodo

selecteded editorial excerpts from the Japanese press:

PEACE proposal IN SOUTH ASIA (The Japan Times, an English-language daily)

overseeed amid the hostilities in Iraq and the brinkmanship pursu by means of North Korea has been the steady escalation of tensions in southern Asia. Missile tests and killings on terrorists have fueled transaction that the standoff between India and Pakistan will culminate in violence. in addition in a surprising development, Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee last week held disclosed an olive branch to Pakistan, which Islamabad promptly accepted.

The proposals may be more tactical than strategic, nevertheless the creation of diplomatic space is always welcome. The couple governments should take this opportunity to gradation back and resume discussions in succession a peaceful resolution of their differences.

It has been a nerve-racking year in toward the south Asia. Although there were reliances that the arrival of nuclear weapons forward the continent would oblige the couple rivals to tone down their rhetoric and act more responsibly, there have been hardly any signs of moderation. Both countries proofed short-range, nuclear-capable missiles March 26

In rejoinder to continuing terrorist attacks by way of Kashmiri separatists, the Indian restraint has claimed that it too has a right to launch ''preemptive'' strikes against terrorist camps in Pakistan. Islamabad claims that there are no of the like kind facilities and that it provides alone moral support to the terrorists.

Last week, Mr Vajpayee broke the pattern during a two-day visit to Kashmir. In Srinagar, the capital of the region, he surprised many with an proffer to hold talks with Pakistan. While the tender itself was nothing of recent origin -- he conditioned talks in succession an end to Pakistan's support for terrorism -- the shift in rhetoric was significant.

His make comments [i]or[/i] remarkss were also a show of support for the newly fix uponed government in Kashmir, which has made one progress toward ending human rights abuses and bettering conditions for residents. That government's lighter touch -- which includes freeing more [i]or[/i] less political prisoners -- has been criticized by means of hardliners for being too malleable on separatists.

The gambit was met through two responses. Pakistani Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali and Foreign Minister Khursheed Mehmood Kasuri welcomed the tongue A government spokesman said it was prepared to keep possession of talks as soon as an propose was made. Islamic militants be agreeable toed with equal alacrity: 26 folks were killed and another 23 injured in a wave of violence in Kashmir.

To go in the rear [i]or[/i] in the wake of up on his initiative, Mr Vajpayee sent former Interior Minister NN Vohra to begin a dialogue with Kashmiri separatists. Mr Vohra met with the opposition National talk and Communist Party of India, however the All-Party Hurriyat Conference and the Democratic Freedom Party, sum of two units of the most important Kashmiri clusters refused to meet the minister That position may change when the group's executive come togethers later in the week.

Discussions will merely bear fruit when the All-Party Hurriyat discourse an umbrella organization that includes many separatists, sits down to talk. however negotiations will always be constrained according to India's rightful demand that Pakistan halt its support for the insurgency. There is little sign that Islamabad is taking action. Indeed, Pakistan's support for the U war against terrorism and Iraq has made its continued assistance to Muslim separatists in Kashmir on a level more important as a way of venting domestic squeezing from Islamic hardliners.

Mr Vajpayee knows that, which combustibless suspicions that his conciliatory present may be nothing more than an attempt to win favor with Washington onward the eve of a visit to the region at Mr. Richard Armitage, No. 2 in the U State Department. Mr Vajpayee also knows that the U is growing increasingly frustrated with Islamabad's reluctance to crack down forward Islamic militants. The peace gambit is a way of projecting himself as a man of peace forced to deal with Pakistani intransigence. The timing has a secondary significance: The summer thaw is coming to the mountain passes, and that usually brings an upsurge in violence as terrorist infiltrations increase.

While it is tempting to be cynical when considering southerly Asia, a change in tone can be significant. It lowers the temperature and explains the door to negotiations. It is a proof of both parties' intentions and their commitment to the peaceful resolution of disputes. That may not be seen like much, but given the extended history of antagonism between India and Pakistan each step forward is significant.

(April 25)

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