IN a major breakthrough that will have a significant impact on the war on terror in South Asia, India and Pakistan announced at the weekend that they are resuming top-level talks, stalled since July's bomb blasts in Mumbai, and setting up a "joint mechanism" on cross-border terrorism.

The agreement came during a summit between Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf on the sidelines of the Non-Aligned Movement's meeting in Havana, Cuba.

Bilateral relations between New Delhi and Islamabad have been in a deep freeze since the July 11 blasts ripped through the suburban train system in Mumbai, India's economic capital.

Claims at the time were that the bombs were the work of terrorists of the al-Qa'ida-linked Lashkar-e-Toiba and other jihadist movements based in Pakistan, and the Indian Government immediately suspended bilateral talks then going on at foreign-minister level.

Dr Singh made it plain that he was not prepared to allow a resumption of talks until Islamabad committed itself to a more forthright statement on terrorism, and that appears to be implicit in a joint statement issued after the one-on-one meeting between the two leaders. Just what the so-called "institutional mechanism" to deal with terrorism will be is not spelled out, but according to reports on Saturday, the agreement means the two countries will "conduct counter-terrorism investigations together".

Reading out a joint statement, Dr Singh, with General Musharraf at his side, said: "We have decided to work for a peaceful negotiated settlement of all issues between the two countries, including Jammu and Kashmir, in a sincere and purposeful manner."

The statement said the two leaders had directed their foreign ministers to meet shortly in New Delhi to resume the bilateral dialogue, and that other steps would follow this consultation.

Dr Singh will shortly visit Islamabad -- his first visit to the Pakistani capital since becoming Prime Minister -- and General Musharraf said he would be prepared to make a second official visit to New Delhi.

The agreement suggests a real thaw in relations and one that augurs well for future co-operation, particularly on terrorism and the brutal conflict taking place in Jammu and Kashmir.

Certainly, there was none of the recrimination and finger-wagging that has pervaded the relationship in recent weeks, and both leaders seem to have adopted a "let bygones be bygones" attitude.

Indeed, Dr Singh seems to have gone out of his way in trying to ensure a return to the negotiating table, even adopting what was described in New Delhi at the weekend as "a bold, albeit politically fraught, departure from India's traditional stance", which has held that terrorist groups operating from Pakistan invariably do so with official sanction.

In Havana, it seems, Dr Singh conceded that this may not be the case, and that some of the terror groups accused of launching attacks across the border into India may be operating autonomously rather than with any sort of sanction from Pakistan's Inter-Intelligence Service.

Dr Singh also gave further comfort to General Musharraf by describing Pakistan as "a victim of terror" -- again, something that Islamabad maintains it is, despite criticism that it is not doing enough to suppress terror groups. Dr Singh said: "A message must emanate from us that we are united in our desire to fight and eliminate the scourge of terrorism."

But he cautioned against allowing "the forces of intolerance and extremism to distract the world's attention from the vital concerns of our people -- the problems of poverty, ignorance and disease."

General Musharraf said: "A historic opportunity exists that must be seized by the leadership of the two countries to bring to a close the chapter of tensions and conflict in our region.

"It is of paramount importance that we devote all our energies to ensuring poverty alleviation, universal education, better health and higher standards of living for our people."

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