It now appears that war between nuclear powers India and Pakistan can be prevented. Islamabad's current crackdown on militant organizations may not have fully satisfied New Delhi, but Pakistani President Gen. Pervez Musharraf's gesture at the recent conference of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation in Katmandu both surprised and impressed Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee.
Musharraf walked up to Vajpayee at the start of the meeting and extended his hand. Vajpayee rose, smiled and reciprocated.
The handshake -- which received considerable media coverage worldwide -- came in the midst of a series of measures that Musharraf has been taking to curb what New Delhi terms "cross-border terrorism" in Kashmir.