As India and Pakistan hunkered down to discuss nuclear confidence building measures (CBMs) at New Delhi's Hyderabad House, over 30 top strategic thinkers from the US, Europe, Asia and the Middle East gathered at the Taj Man Singh Hotel a few kilometres down the road to discuss terror.

The Strategic Foresight Group, a Mumbai based think tank, has organised the two-day (June 19-20) international round table on 'constructing peace, deconstructing terror'.

Speaking at a low-key press conference on Friday to kick off the event, the group's president Sundeep Waslekar said the aim of the conference is to 'explore an intellectual agreement on sustainable global security network'.

The conference would also examine ways to stem the 'apparent conflict between the Western and Islamic countries' post 9/11.

"The strategy pursued since 9/11 has obviously not worked," he said. "The United Nation's credibility, the long term nature of the regime in Afghanistan and the use of force by the US and its allies in Iraq without rules or multilateral legitimacy has been questioned," he said.

The 30-member round table would comprise 15 experts from the US and Europe and 15 from Asia and the Middle East, including Muslim and non-Muslim nations.

However, there are none from Israel or Pakistan. Pakistan had been 'deliberately excluded because it might have diluted the international focus of the conference into a regional one', said Waslekar.

Apart from the US, which has the maximum number of representatives (five), including former undersecretary of state Richard McCormack and former Congressman Stephen Solarz, the other experts are from Norway, UK, Germany, Russia, Switzerland, Italy, The Philippines, Thailand, Oman, Qatar, Japan, Indonesia, Iran, China, Tunisia and Malaysia.

The Indian representation includes Lt General Satish Nambiar, Maj Gen Afsir Karim, former Bharatiya Janata Party national president Jana Krishnamurthi and Congress party leader Prabha Rau.

Asked about the efficacy of such a conference given that the world is divided over the definition of terrorism, Waslekar said formulating such a definition was also part of the agenda.

A declaration or a consensus statement is likely to be issued at the end of the conference. This agreement will subsequently be sent to the heads of state of almost every nation in the world.