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Sharief ready to restore LoC

US President Bill Clinton and Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharief have said that they had agreed that concrete steps would be taken to restore the Line of Control in Kashmir.

''It was agreed between the president and the prime minister that concrete steps will be taken for the restoration of the Line of Control,'' the two leaders said in a joint statement released by the White House after talks between Clinton and Sharief.

Clinton spent most of his US Independence Day holiday yesterday in hastily arranged talks with Sharief about Kashmir.

The joint statement said the two agreed the confrontation ''contains the seeds of a wider conflict'' and that ''it was vital for the peace of south Asia that the Line of Control in Kashmir be respected by both parties''.

Clinton urged an immediate cessation of hostilities once steps were taken to restore the LoC.

Clinton and Sharief agreed that the way to resolve issues between India and Pakistan, including the Kashmir conflict, was the direct talks initiated in February in Lahore. ''The president said he would take a personal interest in encouraging an expeditious resumption and intensification of those bilateral efforts once the sanctity of the Line of Control has been full restored,'' the statement added.

UNI

The Kargil Crisis

EXTERNAL LINKS

US expecting Kashmir pullback by Pakistani side
US-Pakistan deal calls for withdrawal of Kashmir fighters
Nawaz, Clinton agree to take concrete steps to restore LoC

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