National Conference has welcomed improvement of ties between New Delhi and Islamabad and termed it as a positive development that can usher the entire region into an era of political stability and peace. According to a statement issued, National Conference Additional General Secretary Dr. Sheikh Mustafa Kamal, while welcoming exchanges between Prime Minister of India and Prime Minister of Pakistan, has said that the people of Jammu and Kashmir were both the biggest victims of enmity between the two countries and also the biggest beneficiaries of peace between the two countries. Dr. Mustafa Kamal has said there was a need to make dialogue between New Delhi and Islamabad sustainable. Dr. Kamal said incidents of violence, intrusion and terrorism that happen right around the time when the two countries are coming closer are handiwork of those elements in both countries that are inimical to peace and mutual cooperation.
The need of the hour, Dr. Kamal said was to disincentivize these acts by not allowing them to derail the dialogue process. While both countries have their own specific internal issues to deal with, it is important that an all-weather working relationship evolves at the top-most level between New Delhi and Islamabad.Dr. Kamal said there was also a need to strengthen the existing Confidence Building Measures (CBMs) between India and Pakistan that included Cross LOC Trade, Visa on arrival for senior citizens and children and a more lenient visa regime for traders, scholars, journalists and professionals. Dr. Kamal said that an atmosphere of mutual cooperation in the fields of science, technology, education, research and development between India and Pakistan could perhaps be the best solution to deal with poverty and instability in the South Asia region.