ANKARA - Turkey welcomed on Friday the decision of Pakistan and India to decrease the number of soldiers along their border.
A Foreign Ministry statement noted that following the announcement of India that it would recall 500,000 military personnel from the border region between India and Pakistan, Pakistan also announced that it would do the same thing. ''This development is considered as an important step for decreasing the tension between the two countries which constitutes a source of worry for our country and the international society,'' Ministry said.
Noting that these constructive approaches should continue for taking up of all issues of conflict between the two countries including the Kashmir problem, Foreign Ministry said that Turkey hoped a meaningful dialogue and cooperation to be started to solve these problems by peaceful means in a short period of time.
Turkey also welcomed the reform policies of the Pakistani administration headed by Pakistani Head of State Pervaz Musharraf in fight with radical movements, Ministry said and noted that Turkey supported these policies.
India which held Pakistan responsible for the bloody attack on Indian parliament last December, had started to amass soldiers in the border. Pakistan also had deployed soldiers as a retaliation and they had amassed almost one million soldiers along their border.