Border blockade for Nato troops continues

Border blockade for Nato troops continues

More than three months after the Nato and ISAF troops attacked two Pakistan outposts on Afghanistan border, Pakistan continues suspension of NATO supply routes through its territory into Afghanistan.

A top US official said on Tuesday that he will soon visit Islamabad for talks and hoped after the latest dialogues, the Pakistan government will give him a green signal to reopen the border to supply convoys for NATO troops in Afghanistan.

The crucial supply routes have been closed since November 26 NATO/ISAF airstrikes on two Pakistan check posts that left 24 soldiers dead and several others injured. The closure has meant coalition forces have had to spend much more money to get goods to
Afghanistan using alternative routes.

Despite immense pressure from Pentagon to reopen the supply routes, Pakistan remained adamant to its stance. Last month Islamabad temporarily allowed Nato to ship perishable food to its troops in Afghanistan and General James Mattis, who oversees US forces
in the Middle East and Afghanistan as the head of Central Command, said that the routes through Pakistan are not only useful for the supply of goods but will also vital role during withdrawal of US troops later this year. A scheduled US troop drawdown calls
for reducing American forces from 90,000 to 68,000 by the end of September, 2012.

"However, (for) the withdrawal out of Afghanistan we do need the ground lines of communication through Pakistan. As far as the status of that discussion, I will fly to Pakistan here in about 10 days and we’ll reopen the discussion," Mattis told the Senate
Armed Services Committee.

Islamabad, on the other hand, has been waiting for the parliamentary process to be done and that’s why there’s been a bit of a delay on their part. Gen Mattis, however, hoped that it would be finished by the time he arrives for talks.

Short URL: https://www.newspakistan.pk/?p=14961

Posted by Asma Rafique on Mar 7 2012. Filed under Latest News, Pakistan. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry