Representatives of the two police forces first met late Tuesday at Charles de Gaulle airport outside Paris, where the girl, Shevaun Pennington, and 31-year-old Toby Studabaker were believed to have travelled on Saturday.

But "no new information" has come to light, French sources said.

The weekend disappearance of Shevaun and Studabaker, who wrote to each other via the Internet for a year before meeting, has sparked an international manhunt and concern for the pre-teen's well-being.

The two are believed to have flown from Manchester to Paris via London on Saturday, but their whereabouts since then are unknown.

French investigators said Tuesday that the girl spent two-and-a-half hours in Charles de Gaulle airport before flying to Liverpool, but British police have rejected that theory.

The girl contacted her parents by telephone late Tuesday, assuring them that she was safe but without saying where she was or if she was still with Studabaker.

Studabaker's brother told the BBC that the ex-marine had called and told him he had not harmed Shevaun in any way, but did not give any indication of where he was or whether he was still with the girl.

British police told AFP Wednesday they believed the two were still together.

WAR.WIRE