India and Pakistan on Sunday promised new steps to turn a ceasefire line in the disputed territory of Kashmir into a "soft border", including measures to increase trade across the de facto frontier and easier transit opportunities for locals.

In a symbolic gesture, Manmohan Singh, Indian prime minister, also presented General Pervez Musharraf, the Pakistani president, with his birth certificates during a meeting in New Delhi that significantly advanced the 15-month-old peace between the rival nuclear powers.