Pakistan is most likely to restore the suspended NATO supplies to Afghanistan through its soil in the first week of next month (February) after the completion of the ongoing parliamentary reevaluation of Islamabad ties with Washington by the end of current month.
The Parliamentary Committee on National Security (PCNS) has come up with 35 recommendations on ‘new terms of engagement’ with the US and parliament is all set to approve them through a resolution of its joint sitting in next few days.Parliament is likely to ask the US to refrain from violating Pakistan’s sovereignty in future, the way it did on November 26, last year when NATO airstrikes were carried out on two Pakistani outposts in Mohmand Agency. “The parliamentary resolution, which will also seek formal US/NATO apology over killings of Pakistani soldiers and breach of country’s border, will pave the way for
the restoration of NATO supplies that were blocked by Islamabad in the wake of NATO airstrikes,” said a diplomat requesting anonymity. He said the restoration of NATO supplies would most likely take place in first week of February after the completion of parliamentary review of Pakistan-US relations by the end of the current month. “As a result Pakistan will again open Torkham and Chaman border crossings with Afghanistan for the NATO supplies but this time it will not be a free movement and every NATO container would be taxed by Pakistani authorities,” he said.
To a question on the ‘new terms of engagement’ between Pakistan and US on counter-terrorism cooperation, the diplomat said those would be given final shape during the visit of US special envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan, Marc Grossman, which was expected at the end of January. Grossman, who was supposed to come to Pakistan early this month, was advised by Pakistani authorities against undertaking this visit before the completion of parliamentary review of Pakistan-United States ties. However, another official said in future there would be no secret CIA or American military operations on ground in Pakistan and also no unauthorised incursions would be made into Pakistani airspace.
“The US will have to give a firm assurance that it will abide by what it commits to as a part of new terms of engagement with Pakistan and the guarantee that there shall be no violation of Pakistani sovereignty and no breach of our borders, are at the top of our demands’ list,” he said. He said Pakistani authorities were looking into the possibility of allowing back some US military trainers but they would be in far less number now and not like in hundreds as they were used to be. “The drones will not be allowed, however, to come back to Pakistan and being flown from any Pakistani airstrip, like ‘Shamsi airbase’ in Balochistan,” he said.
Restoration of NATO supplies likely in Feb
