Annan calls on India and Pakistan to resolve differences through dialogue

Secretary-General Kofi Annan has urged the leaders of India and Pakistan to avoid escalating actions and further statements that could aggravate the situation between both countries.

In the letters sent on Tuesday evening to Indian Prime Minister Atal B. Vajpayee and Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, Mr. Annan said that every effort had to be made to foster a calmer atmosphere so that differences - no matter how great - could be resolved through dialogue and diplomacy.

The Secretary-General also told the leaders of India and Pakistan that the international community as a whole had great interest in improved and stable relations between their two countries.