War in Iraq prodded India, Pakistan to make peace: Vajpayee

Vajpayee, however, rejected opposition claims the United States had put direct pressure on the two estranged neighbours to sort out their five decades of hostilities.

The premier told the Times of India newspaper that a "circumstantial factor" was linked to his gesture in Kashmir on April 18 last year when he extended a "hand of friendship" to Pakistan to kick off a fresh peace initiative.

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"The war in Iraq was a warning to all developing countries (that) we needed to resolve our disputes peacefully and speedily amongst ourselves," the 79-year-old Vajpayee told the English-language daily.

"The number of people in Pakistan who think likewise is steadily growing," Vajpayee said, without naming individuals who back the ongoing peace process between the two South Asian countries.

India and Pakistan, who have fought two of their three wars over Kashmir since independence in 1947, came dangerously close to a fourth war in 2002 following an attack on the Indian parliament by gunmen New Delhi said were sponsored by Pakistan.

The 10-month standoff, during which a total of 700,000 troops massed on their borders, ended following a series of visits to the two countries by Western leaders, fearful that spiralling tensions could trigger a nuclear holocaust in South Asia.

Vajpayee told the paper he was convinced Islamabad would not try to derail the ongoing peace process, which has led, inter alia, to the first full tour of Pakistan by an Indian cricket team in almost 15 years.