By Jill McGivering BBC South Asia correspondent

British Foreign Minister Jack Straw arrived in Delhi late on Thursday as part of further moves to reduce tensions between India and Pakistan.

Both countries still have large numbers of troops massed along their joint border and in Kashmir - and although the threat of war has lessened in the last few weeks, it is still real.

Mr Straw faces a tough task in the region

Britain, along with the United States, is pressing both sides to make positive moves towards ending their hostile relationship.

Mr Straw has a tough task ahead. He wants to persuade India - and later Pakistan - to do much more to reduce tensions.

There have been positive moves since the two nuclear neighbours went to the brink of war in May.

Pakistan did promise to permanently end support of cross-border militancy, and initially at least, infiltrations did fall.

Mixed signals

Now India is giving mixed signals about whether it accepts infiltration is still down.

India responded with some minor gestures - allowing Pakistan access to Indian air space, for example - but they were tentative measures, smaller than many hoped.

India and Pakistan recently came close to war

Since then the situation seems to have stagnated. Large numbers of troops are still deployed; the crisis is far from over.

And in Indian Kashmir the violence, which could destabilise this whole process, goes on.

India did respond with unusual restraint to the last major attack - the killings of 28 Hindus last Saturday.

Officials here even stopped short of blaming Pakistan.

Tenuous process

As Mr Straw arrived, another drama was just ending - three militants killed after taking a local family hostage and then being engaged in a gun battle with Indian forces.

Police said the gang was planning to ambush an army convoy. Similar incidents are reported almost daily.

India is still sceptical about whether Pakistan is sincere about ending infiltration for good.

And it wants far more - the dismantling of militant training camps and blocking of funds.

But as Mr Straw may explain, it has to offer more too - to keep Pakistan engaged in this tenuous political process.