“History has an important bearing on the state of the current relations,” he said.
Citing bilateral relations, he said that at one end of the spectrum, there were the US-Canada relations which were the epitome of cordiality, and at the other were the ties between the two Koreas marked by extreme acrimony. He said it was for India and Pakistan to opt for a model from either of the two, and the choice should not be difficult.
Raghavan said 1979 was a watershed year not only in the history of the region but globally too. During this year, there was the Islamic Revolution in Iran which had no precedent. Then, he said, there was the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, accompanied by many decisive steps in Pakistan.
He stated that the forces of globalisation transformed the markets globally, there was the China-Vietnam dispute, the year had a great impact on South Asia, and as a result of this a change had been let loose and there was going to be a different regional environment.
Technology, he said, had made great strides and things like the Internet and other information technology instruments were bringing the people of India and Pakistan closer. “The influence of the government in forming opinions on both sides of the divide is waning,” he said.
He said another issue that made ties between the two countries complicated was the issue of “terrorism and extremism”.
He said that it was the people on both sides who had to be empowered to decide the fate and the future of both countries.
Raghavan said there were building blocks, including the Simla Accord of 1972, the Lahore Declaration of 2000 and the Islamabad Declaration of 2004, which could help start mending the bilateral ties.
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