Wednesday, May 25 2005 19:24 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Islamabad: Signalling Pakistan's willingness to open up trade with India, President Pervez Musharraf today (May 25, 2005) said the two countries could "simultaneously" improve economic ties while moving forward on the political front to resolve bilateral issues.

"We have to move forward on the political front effectively for dispute resolution and also simultaneously look for developing trade and economic ties to the benefit of both countries," he told a delegation of Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) led by its President Onkar S Kanwar in Islamabad. With "political will and sincerity" the two countries can overcome their political issues and improve their relations rapidly, State-run APP news agency quoted him as saying.

At the same time, it said, Musharraf hoped the two countries would not repeat the past mistake of brushing the underlying causes of tension under the carpet.

"The past accords between the countries failed as they did not address the lingering disputes and brushed them under the carpet -- let us not do it again," he said.

Referring to the Indo-Pak peace process, he said he has found Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to be sincere in his intentions.

"But we cannot guarantee the same degree of harmony between the future leadership," he said while underlining the importance of grasping the peace opportunity.