New Delhi, May 02: India's peace initiative towards Pakistan was acclaimed worldover today with US, Britain, Russia and France leading the comity of nations in terming the move as "positive" and "promising" towards finding a way forward. World leaders were quick to react to the announcement by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee to resume diplomatic and air links with Pakistan after more than a year, with British foreign secretary Jack Straw and Russian foreign minister Igor Ivanov calling up their Indian counterpart Yashwant Sinha to convey their appreciation of the move. "I congratulate leaders of both sides on these first steps -- that are just that, first steps on the way to finding a way forward," US Secretary of State Colin Powell told a press conference in Tirana.

"I am very pleased with developments in the sub-continent over the last several weeks... All this is very, very promising at a time when people were beginning to wonder whether or not they were going back to the potential for conflict," he added.

Straw conveyed his country's "deep appreciation" for the "great statesmanship shown once again" by Vajpayee. Bureau Report