Pakistan, India agree to ease visa, trade restrictions

He made this statement after talks with his Pakistani counterpart Hina Rabbani Khar in New Delhi.Conceding that there were challenges that lay ahead, Krishna told reporters: I can confidently say that our relations are on the right track.He also said the two nations have agreed to ease some trade and travel restrictions.The foreign ministers of India and Pakistan called Wednesday for a new spirit of cooperation between their nuclear-armed nations as they met for the first time since peace talks resumed earlier this year.While no major breakthroughs on their thorny disputes were expected, officials said they hoped the high-level meeting would help build confidence and trust between neighbors that have fought three wars since 1947.India looks for a cooperative relationship with Pakistan. It is in the interest of peace not only for our two countries, but for the entire region and beyond, Indias foreign minister, SM Krishna, told reporters before the meeting. We would love to see a stable, smooth and prosperous Pakistan.Pakistans newly installed foreign minister, Hina Rabbani Khar, said her country was looking for a friendly and cooperative relationship with India that is not held hostage to the past.The meeting was a major milestone in the new round of peace talks that began in February. India suspended an earlier round of talks after 10 Pakistani-based gunmen laid siege to the city of Mumbai in 2008, killing 166 people. India has argued that Pakistani intelligence helped plan that attack and that Pakistan has not done enough to crack down on those behind it.Despite a July 13 triple bombing in Mumbai that killed 20 people, neither side backed away from the new round of talks. Indias investigation into that attack has focused on a shadowy domestic terror group reportedly linked to Pakistani militants, but top government officials have been reluctant to point fingers, calling for patience as the investigation proceeds.The two countries foreign ministers last met a year ago in Islamabad in a tense meeting that erupted into accusations that both sides were fomenting terror attacks on each other. Since February, however, the two sides have discussed a range of issues including terrorism threats, cooperation on the Mumbai investigation and the divided Himalayan territory of Kashmir, which both sides claim in its entirety.The mood Wednesday at least before the meeting appeared far more cordial, with the foreign ministers smiling and shaking hands before going indoors for talks on security, increasing cross-border commerce and loosening visa restrictions.However, Khar raised eyebrows in India by meeting late Tuesday with separatists from the disputed Himalayan territory of Kashmir, who were not included in Wednesdays talks. The status of divided Kashmir is a major source of tension, with the U.N.-drawn line of control dividing the region the worlds most heavily armed border.Some within the Kashmiri bloc Hurriyat Conference object to the talks being held without them, while others say dialogue is good for stability. The Kashmiri separatists have openly opposed Indias heavy-handed rule and argued that Kashmiris should vote themselves to decide the territorys final status.