US welcomes Pak, India trade ties

The United States has welcomed Indo-Pak trade relations saying that trade ties between both courtiers were encouraging signs toward realization of a ‘new silk road’.
“Recent measures to normalise trade between Pakistan and India are encouraging signs towards the realization of a “new silk road” connecting south and central Asia,” Robert O Blake, Assistant Secretary of State for Southern and Central Asian Affairs said.
Robert O Blake said the concept of making Afghanistan a hub of economic activity would provide an “alternative to insecurity and extremism.”
Blake was speaking as an observer at the conclusion of a South Asian summit which India, Pakistan and Afghanistan are attending.
US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton proposed the idea in India earlier this year saying it would help Afghanistan to recover from the effects of war without becoming a permanent recipient of foreign aid.
“We understand the changes will not take place overnight but a number of recent developments across South Asia offer significant hope,” Blake said.
“The United States is very encouraged by the positive recent steps taken by the governments of Pakistan and India to initiate close trade and economic ties. Closer trade will create a natural foundation to a stronger bilateral relations,” he added
Pakistan and India have fought three wars since independence from Britain, mainly over the disputed region of Kashmir.
In the latest positive sign, Pakistan last week announced a normalization in trade ties with India.
Pakistani Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh met in this India Ocean archipelago on the sidelines of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation summit, amid signs of warming relations between the two nuclear-armed neighbours.