Foreign secretaries from India and Pakistan will meet on Thursday in New Delhi for the official talks.
The peace process came to a halt after the Mumbai attacks in November 2008.
Washington has long sought peace between the two countries, so that Pakistan could withdraw troops from its Indian border to focus on the battle against the Taliban and al Qaeda.
Residents of Kashmir's capital Srinagar feel more needs to be done regarding Kashmir.
[Rashed Mufti, Local Resident]:
"Let alone India Pakistan, even Asia's main problem is Kashmir -resolve Kashmir and everything else will be fine."
Many in Pakistani Kashmir believe the upcoming talks are a result of U.S. regional efforts to bring stability to Afghanistan and Pakistan.
The Indian Foreign Secretary says Indian concerns about militant groups based in Pakistan will be the main focus of the talks.
The two countries held several high-level meetings on the sidelines of international conferences last year.
But New Delhi has refused to resume the dialogue until Pakistan takes more action against Pakistan-based militant groups it blames for attacks in India and in Indian Kashmir.
Kashmiris say they want to be a part of the negotiations.
[Hasan Shaiba Naqvi, Local Advocate]:
"All negotiations related to the Kashmir Movement for Freedom, whether they are the United Nations resolutions or anything else, should not be held without involving the Kashmiri people. Without them, any talks, any negotiations can never be result-oriented."
No breakthrough is expected from Thursday’s talks.