India claims Zardari, Singh discussed Hafiz Saeed

Both issues were discussed, along with the activities of Hafiz Saeed and ways to increase trade between the countries, Indias Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai told reporters.A visa agreement that will simplify cross-border travel had been worked out and would be signed at a later date.Both felt that we need to move forward step by step, Mathai said of the talks between the leaders, which will be followed by meetings between home and trade ministers in the coming months.President Asif Ali Zardari on Sunday became the first Pakistani head of state since 2005 to visit India, on a one-day trip that he described as very fruitful in improving ties between the rivals.During a visit billed as private but of great diplomatic significance, Zardari lunched with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and invited him to visit Pakistan.The meeting has received a cautious welcome from analysts who see it as another sign of improving relations between the bitter neighbours, but the issue of Pakistani militant activity against India remains deeply problematic.Saeed lives in Pakistan, where the government says it has insufficient evidence to prosecute him, but his terror links were highlighted recently by a $10-million bounty for his arrest offered by the United States.We have had some very fruitful bilateral talks together, Zardari said at a joint news conference during the first presidential trip to India since Pervez Musharraf visited seven years ago.We would like to have better relations with India. We spoke on all topics that we could, added Zardari, who was accompanied by a large delegation including his son and Interior Minister Rehman Malik.The lunch -- with kebabs and curries from all over India, including the disputed region of Kashmir -- was preceded by a 40-minute private conversation between the two leaders.I am very satisfied with the outcome of this visit, Singh told reporters. President Zardari has invited me to visit Pakistan and Id be very happy to visit Pakistan at a mutually convenient date.He stressed that relations between the countries should become normal. That is our common desire.India broke off a slow-moving peace process to settle all outstanding problems with Pakistan after the Mumbai attacks, which left 166 people dead, but the two sides have since warily returned to the table.In Pakistan on Sunday, the government was dealing with the aftermath of a huge avalanche the day before which smashed into an army camp, burying up to 135 people, mostly soldiers, on the de facto border with India.Pakistani troops were frantically trying to find signs of life in an area near the Siachen glacier, an inhospitable icefield that became the site of fierce fighting between Pakistan and India in 1987.--Agencies