ISLAMABAD, April 29: Acting Indian High Commissioner T.C.A. Raghavan said on Tuesday that Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali’s telephonic contact with his Indian counterpart, Atal Behari Vajpayee, was a “good development and a step forward” in improving bilateral relations.

“It has quite evidently eased tensions and created optimism about the strained bilateral ties,” he told Dawn.

“Where do we go from here is something that both the countries have to decide,” he said.

Mr Raghavan said there was tremendous scope for economic and cultural collaboration but a more conducive environment was required for it.

“The shooting and killings across the Line of Control must stop first,” he said.

He said a more conducive atmosphere was contingent upon putting an end to cross-border killings.

He said Prime Minister Vajpayee’s offer for a dialogue was indicative of the fact that “he wants good relations with Pakistan and wants to reduce tensions between the countries.”

“What the prime minister said in Srinagar and then in parliament does not need to be reiterated through diplomatic channels, what he said stands for itself,” Mr Raghavan asserted when asked if New Delhi was likely to make a formal offer for a dialogue through diplomatic channels.

He said the fact that Pakistan had responded to Mr Vajpayee’s offer “so promptly” demonstrated that his message was understood by Islamabad.