Qingdao: Encouraged by his first meeting with his Indian counterpart K Natwar Singh here, Pakistan Foreign Minister Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri today (June 22, 2004) said the Kashmir issue could be solved "easily" if both countries showed "political will".

"After my meeting (with Singh), I am very encouraged by the general attitude of the Indian Foreign Minister and the statements that he made during our talks - both public, when there were note-takers, and in private, when we were walking in the lawn," Kasuri said in an interview.

Commenting on his maiden face-to-face meeting with Singh yesterday on the sidelines of a regional conference, Kasuri said the Kashmir issue could be solved if both sides had political will.

"It is said that where there is a will, there is a way. Where there is political will, it can easily be done," he said while claiming that Islamabad did have political will to resolve the Kashmir issue.

"There is political will in the Government of Pakistan. Both President (Pervez) Musharraf and Prime Minister (Zafarullah Khan) Jamali are backing this," he said.