The selection of Mr. Manmohan Singh as prime minister designate in India is a welcome development. Mr. Singh is a known quantity, committed to continuing the positive legacies of the former government while smoothing their rough edges. Equally important, his appointment represents the healing of one of modern India's great scars: the bridging of the divide between India's Sikh and Hindu communities.
Mr. Singh is a former bureaucrat and central-bank governor. During his five-year term as finance minister over a decade ago, he helped initiate reforms that opened the closed socialist economy. After being selected by the Congress Party to lead the new government, Mr. Singh promised to continue those reforms, while working harder to see that the benefits of development are more broadly distributed.
Mr. Singh also pledged to continue the peace talks with Pakistan that were initiated by his predecessor, Mr. Atal Behari Vajpayee. Institutionalizing those discussions and making concrete steps toward confidence-building measures would go a long way toward building peace and security in South Asia. Part of that effort includes discussions with Kashmiri separatists; Mr. Singh has said that he is ready to hold talks with all parties over the disputed territory. Holding to that vow will be critical -- and exceedingly difficult, as militant fighters from both sides continue their efforts to sabotage any peace in the region.