India and Pakistan have concluded their latest round of peace talks with no significant progress on the issue of the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir.

India's Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee (l) shakes hands with his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mehmood Qureshi before their formal talks in Islamabad, Pakistan, 21 May 2008

Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee met Wednesday in Islamabad with his Pakistani counterpart, Shah Mehmood Qureshi, for the first time since a new civilian government took power in Pakistan in March.

The two nuclear armed neighbors signed a pact granting consular access to prisoners in each other's jails. But they reported little progress in resolving their dispute over Kashmir, which is claimed by both countries.

Mukherjee also met Wednesday with Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf.

The meetings come one day after Mukherjee met with leaders of Pakistan's leading political parties and praised what he called Pakistan's new democratic environment.

The peace talks began Tuesday with discussions between Indian Foreign Secretary Shiv Shankar Menon and his Pakistani counterpart, Salman Bashir.

India and Pakistan have fought two of their three wars over the disputed region of Kashmir. They began a peace process in 2004. Despite several rounds of talks since then, they remained deadlocked on Kashmir.

Separatist Islamic militants in the region have been fighting for independence from India or a merger with Pakistan.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.