Wednesday, June 1 2005 20:41 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Islamabad: India and Pakistan would be able to resolve Kashmir and other issues if the "intention and will" to settle them continued on the part of their leadership, President Pervez Musharraf has said.

He said the political issues affecting the Muslim world, particularly Palestine and Kashmir, should be resolved for durable peace in the world.

"Now is the time for conflict resolution, we have to resolve the conflicts of Palestine and Kashmir, which directly affect Pakistan," he told CNN last night (May 31, 2005).

Musharraf also expressed the hope that with "good intentions and will" Pakistan and India would be able to resolve the long-standing Kashmir issue.

"This is the first time, I personally feel that other than the joint statements that we have given, there is intention and the will on part of the leadership of both sides to resolve the disputes and not brush them under the carpet.

"If this continues, we will resolve the disputes and not manage them by brushing them under the carpet, we will reach a conclusion."

Referring to harmony and understanding between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and himself, the President expressed the desire to resolve the decades old Kashmir issue within the span of their leadership.

He referred to the failure of past accords between the two countries to address the "underlying cause of tension" and observed that seldom in Pakistan-India environment the leadership of the two countries has had the will to resolve the issues. "So, it is within the span of this leadership that we should resolve the Kashmir dispute."