May 17, 2003	Saturday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 14, 1424

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WASHINGTON, May 16: US National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice has urged India and Pakistan to resume bilateral talks for reducing tensions in South Asia, a message also echoed by the State Department.

Talking to journalists after her meeting with Foreign Minister Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri, Ms Rice said she hoped the new peace initiative would lead to the lessening of tensions in South Asia. India and Pakistan, she said, should resolve their differences through peaceful means and urged them to hold bilateral talks on all disputes, including Kashmir.

Mr Kasuri left for London on Thursday night where he meets senior British and Commonwealth officials before heading home.

The United States, Ms Rice said, had a strong interest in peace and stability of the South Asian region, and would continue to play its role in promoting the peace process.

She said that as “a close United States ally” Pakistan had made “bold and worthy” contributions to the fight against terrorism

Speaking of the need for “enlightened moderation” in today’s world, Ms Rice said Washington supported Pakistan’s efforts to become “a model moderate Islamic state.”

Pakistan, she said, has lent firm and principled support to the Bonn process that led to the establishment of the Hamid Karzai government in Afghanistan in December 2001, and was now cooperating with Kabul in the fight against the remnants of the Taliban and Al Qaeda networks.

Earlier, a State Department spokesman, Philip Reeker, said the US fully supported the progress made in reducing tensions in South Asia.