India and Pakistan agreed today to set up a three-member panel to share intelligence to help combat terrorism at the first peace talks between the countries in almost a year.

Senior diplomats, however, have failed to make any headway on the core dispute over Kashmir, the mountainous region claimed by both India and Pakistan.

Riaz Mohammed Khan, Pakistan's Foreign Secretary met with Shiv Shankar Menon, his Indian counterpart, in Delhi to resume peace talks that were suspended after the Bombay train bombing that killed 186 people in July.

Mr Khan told a news conference that the panel "will be headed by additional secretary level officials dealing with international organisations and will be coordinated by the foreign office of both the countries."

Both India and Pakistan had proposed such a panel during talks to set up a joint terrorism initiative between Manmohan Singh, India's Prime Minister, and Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan's President, in Cuba in September.

Mr Khan said today that during the two days of talks Indian officials had given him no evidence of Pakistani links to the Bombay bombings. He said: "There is something about other blasts," but did not elaborate further.

Other attacks have included bombings in New Delhi in October 2005 that killed 62 people, and bombings in March in the Hindu holy city of Varanasi that killed 20. India has blamed both attacks on militants based in Pakistan.

Jeremy Page, The Times's India Correspondent, in New Delhi, said: "Today’s agreement between India and Pakistan is a largely symbolic move designed to keep the fragile peace process on track despite both sides’ refusal to compromise on the core issues dividing them."

Despite expectations that the two sides would tackle the proposed demilitarisation of the Siachen glacier in Kashmir - the world's highest and coldest battlefield - Mr Khan said no breakthroughs had been made on that issue or on the overall status of the disputed Himalayan region.

India, which has controlled strategic heights on the 6,300-metre glacier since 1987, wants to demarcate both sides' troop positions to prevent Pakistan from moving in its soldiers if India withdraws. But Pakistan opposes that on the ground that it would be tacit acceptance of India's claims to Siachen.

Mr Khan also said that the two sides had prepared a deal intended to limit the risk of an inadvertent nuclear conflict, which would be signed at a later date, but he did not provide any details of the agreement.

Mr Menon is due to hold a separate press conference later today when both sides will issue a joint statement detailing the talks.

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