Islamabad: Pakistan based terror outfit Hizbul Mujahideen on May 3 described Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee's offer of talks with Pakistan and his subsequent statements as "encouraging", which provided a "ray of hope" to resolve the Kashmir issue.

In a statement, Hizbul leader Saeed Salahuddin said Vajpayee's address in Parliament is encouraging and could be seen as a ray of hope.

"We hope that Vajpayee would not repeat what the Indian government has done in the past."

Hoping that Vajpayee's statement would not be a diplomatic exercise, he said, "We hope that India would give up traditional stubbornness."

India should not try to score points but hold sincere talks with Pakistan and the Kashmiri leadership, he added.

He said India should not waste any more time as any future conflict between India and Pakistan has the danger of turning into a nuclear confrontation and affect world peace.

Like most of the Pakistan based militant groups, Hizbul too has been designated as a terrorist group by US State Department early this week.

PTI