Washington: US President George W Bush has expressed the hope that India and Pakistan will be able initiate a dialogue on variety of issues during the SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) summit beginning Sunday (Jan 04, 2004).

"The Indians and Pakistanis in upcoming meetings will be able to begin a dialogue on a variety of issues," Bush said yesterday (Jan 01, 2004) after hunting quail near Texas.

"It looks like they are making progress towards reconciling differences. Slowly but surely positive things are taking place, and I commend the leaders of both countries for taking steps towards a peaceful reconciliation of major issues that have divided them," he said.

The US President insisted that Pakistan's nuclear weapons "are secure and that is important".

"It is also important that India, as well, have a secure nuclear weapons programme," he said.