Going by the string of recent developments that have turned Pakistan-India relations from eyeball-to-eyeball confrontation to economic and political engagement, it is hoped that the process may eventually throw up the contours of a solution to all bilateral irritants that have stymied relations. The latest and most critical confidence building measure (CBM) is the opening of a trade gate, christened as the Integrated Check Post (ICP), at Wagah-Attari. India plans to construct as many as 13 ICMs on the borders with Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal, which will lay the groundwork for a region-wide trading network. As trade and economic benefits are the new currency of inter-state relations, the plan to construct a string of ICPs will bind these countries in an inter-connected network of trade corridors that may facilitate trade as far afield as Central Asia. Indian Punjab Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal’s demand for a free trade regime between India and Pakistan has been endorsed by Indian Union Home Minister P Chidambaram, who has revealed that India and Pakistan are trying to establish a liberal travel regime, for which a joint working group has already been constituted. A freer flow of trade and people will be the best CBM the two traditional rivals can aspire to. Many believe that calibrated dismantling of trade barriers and the granting of MFN status on a reciprocal basis will change the substance and atmospherics of engagement. At present India-Pakistan official bilateral annual trade mounts to only $ 2.7 billion as against India-China trade of $ 70 billion. So-called third country trade has lost both countries billions in taxes and duties. Hopefully the opening of the overland trade route will put a stop to this absurdity. What has imparted a political dimension to the thaw is Indian Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai’s recent interview to The Wall Street Journal in which he has declared that India is willing to “discuss” Kashmir, a statement Pakistan should welcome, because it marks a significant shift in India’s recent stance. The timing of this initiative may have something to do with the issue of Hafiz Saeed, who has recently had a $ 10 million bounty placed on his head by the US. India is still demanding action against him for the Mumbai attacks, a demand Pakistan is loath to grant, pleading that there is no ‘evidence’ against him. The series of goodwill initiatives of late include resumption of the stalled composite dialogue, President Zardari’s April 8 India visit, release of virologist Dr Khalil Chisti on bail, the release of Indian fishermen, and acceptance by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh of President Zardari’s invitation to visit Pakistan. What is needed is a sustained and substantive engagement that can become the basis of a resolution of all outstanding bilateral disputes, including Kashmir. It should be mentioned here that over the years Pak-India relations have delineated a seesaw graph, with the relationship getting so tense at times as to arouse fears that even a slight mishandling could plunge the two into open conflict. It will be recalled that the dialogue process was suspended following the Mumbai carnage of 2008. Track-II diplomacy, an important component of the dialogue process, has happily been pursued with diligence and perseverance. The protagonists have become so sensitive that even one misstep can apply the reverse gear to the dialogue process, as the Vajpayee-Musharaff talks in New Delhi demonstrated. These recent developments augur well for bringing the two neighbours to the final round for a comprehensive solution to all disputes, including Kashmir, that will be acceptable to both countries and the people of Kashmir. *