Pakistan cannot afford to face three adversarial situations: one from within, one from the Afghan borderlands, and one from India (as well, another, in Balochistan, where the insurgency is older than Pakistan). India, too, has its own dynamic towards peace, with the Pakistani conflict a distraction for the government’s own agenda on the economic front. In addition, without any movement in the short term (regarding the Mumbai attacks), the Congress-led government is in danger of being held hostage by the Right. A peace process is in the interest, therefore, of the two governments.

These analysts suggest that the younger diplomats are on the road to reversing the kind of reality described by the RAND Corporation’s Christine Fair, who says, “Pakistan’s fears about India are historical, neuralgic and deeply existential.” Similar adjectives could be used to describe the view in India. This rapprochement might strengthen these new attitudes.

The idea of “quiet diplomacy” and “behind the scenes” action is very much the hallmark of the Obama approach. Tinaz Pavri, a professor at Spelman College and an expert on diplomacy between India and Pakistan, said that the Obama team was very interested in being in the “shadows of any Indo-Pak dialogue or statements”.