JAKARTA, July 2: The foreign ministers of Pakistan and India emerged optimistic from talks here on Friday that trust between the two nations was growing and further progress had been made in resolving their long-running Kashmir dispute.

Khurshid Kasuri met his Indian counterpart, Natwar Singh, for 15 minutes on the sidelines of the Asean Regional Forum (ARF) in what was the two nations' second high-level diplomatic encounter in a week.

Talking to newsmen, Natwar Singh said that he and Mr Kasuri had been able to 'carry forward' India and Pakistan's warming relationship. "We have taken it further here. We'll take it further in Islamabad and when he (Khurshid Kasuri) comes to Delhi," Natwar Singh said, referring to the two sets of talks the foreign ministers are scheduled to have over the next two months.

Mr Singh gave no details about the issues discussed in the meeting and gave a non-committal response to a question on whether Friday's events had made him more or less optimistic about resolving the Kashmir dispute.

"I don't talk in terms of optimism or pessimism. One has to be realistic," he said. In reply to the same question, Mr Kasuri said that he was "by temperament" an optimist, but otherwise backed all of Natwar Singh's comments that India-Pakistani relations were being taken forward.

"Basically you can't make significant progress in one meeting but the fact that we did develop a level of trust is helpful," Mr Kasuri said. "Because when you have issues of the nature that we have between Pakistan and India, issues that have defied solutions for 57 years, as has the issue of Jammu and Kashmir, you can't expect to reach a resolution in one or two meetings."

"So as long as you continue to build trust that's what's important." Mr Kasuri said resolving matters such as Kashmir was now down to one factor - political will. "I can tell you that on behalf of Pakistan we have the political will to carry forward this process and I feel that, given the political will, even difficult issues can be resolved."

INVITATION TO KASURI: Natwar Singh said Khurshid Kasuri had been invited to the Indian capital in August to discuss the disputed Kashmir region and confidence-building between the nuclear-armed rivals.