EU welcomes reopening of Kashmir trade route
Thursday, 23 October 2008, 23:42 IST
Printer Print Email Email
Brussels: EU Commissioner for External Relations Benita Ferrero-Waldner Wednesday welcomed the opening of the trade route across the Line of Control (LoC) that divides Jammu and Kashmir and said India and Pakistan can count on the support of the 27-member European bloc to resolve their differences, EuAsiaNews reported. "This is an exciting moment for India and Pakistan; after 61 years, people in Kashmir on both sides of the Line of Control can now enjoy the benefits of regional trade," she said in a statement. This decision shows the vision of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari in bringing people together, Ferrero-Waldner, a former Austria foreign minister, said, adding: "I very much hope this momentum will continue." She continued that both countries know they can count on the strong support of the EU as they resolve their differences bilaterally through peaceful dialogue. Bridging a six-decade divide, India and Pakistan Tuesday resumed trade across the LoC with trucks loaded with good like spices, apples, walnuts and carpets rolling acros the de-facto border from both sides. The cross-LoC trade on the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad and Poonch-Rawlakote routes began for the first time since 1948, when commercial ties snapped following the India-Pakistan war a year after the bloody partition of the subcontinent.
Source: IANS
siliconindia