The Vajpayee-Musharraf talks, the first in two years, have laid the cornerstone for continuing dialogue to settle the disputes between New Delhi and Islamabad. The two leaders were in the right frame of mind to negotiate a peace deal that would help SAARC move forward without being bogged down in Indo-Pak rivalries.

Though the details of what transpired between Prime Minister Vajpayee and President Musharraf have not been made available, indications are there that they have made substantive progress towards a breakthrough. South Asia has reasons to rejoice over the development as in the past SAARC could not operate to its full potential because of the conflict over unresolved bilateral issues, particularly between India and Pakistan. The return of peace, which now sounds like being in prospect, will be an impetus to the SAARC process as much as it will pay dividends in terms of bilateralism.

There were other noteworthy developments as well. The SAARC foreign ministers agreed to sign three pacts in keys areas like free trade, combating terrorism and a social charter, which will definitely open up new vistas of cooperation among the nations. The focus on development and security concerns is a sign of SAARC coming of age -- after failing to make much headway in nearly two decades.

Thawing of relations between India and Pakistan is something that the global community is also looking forward to, thanks to the danger posed by the nuclearisation of the region. For the world at large, it is a question of peace and security, but for the South Asian nations the stake is even higher, since regional cooperation could propel them to newer heights of economic and social development.