Vajpayee hopes Pakistan won't let terrorists operate on its soil

Vajpayee told an election rally in India's commercial capital Mumbai that the two South Asian neighbours had pledged themselves to warming ties.

"Our neighbour is bound by the promise of friendship that it has with us now and that promise binds it to not supporting terrorism or terrorist groups on its soil," Vajpayee told the meeting.

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"This is a decision taken with Islamabad when the friendship initiative started and it is an important decision," he added.

"We have succeeded in friendship with our neighbour and it is not based on any conditions, neither is it based on any deals. Even our neighbour felt we should be friends which is why the peace process is progressing."

India and Pakistan decided to resume talks after a ground breaking meeting between Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee and Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf on January 6 in Islamabad on the sidelines of a regional summit.

Following Vajpayee's meeting with Musharraf, senior officials of both sides met in mid-February for talks, which they said would continue in June.

The often-hostile neighbours' possession of nuclear arsenals has made South Asia one of the world's most feared potential nuclear flashpoints.