WASHINGTON, Feb 11: American forces in Afghanistan launch artillery rounds into Pakistan to strike Taliban fighters who attack their remote outposts, US officials say.

The officials, however, insisted that such cross-border actions against Taliban fighters were only taken in self-defence.

“The United States adheres to all policies and procedures pertaining to the employment of forces as established by the US government,” Lt-Col Teresa Connor, a spokesperson for the US Central Command, told Dawn.

She explains that when the Taliban attack US outposts, American military officials radio their Pakistani counterparts who then take appropriate actions as agreed between the two countries.

“When something happens, we immediately resort to the agreed procedure,” she said. “But sometimes you cannot wait the whole day,” she added, explaining how US troops fire back in self-defence.

Earlier on Sunday, the commander of US forces in Eastern Afghanistan, Army Col John W. Nicholson, told an American news agency that his forces had fired back at Taliban fighters attacking the US outposts from their positions inside the Pakistani border.

The officer, who commands the 3rd Brigade, 10th Mountain Division, told the Associated Press that US troops were equipped to quickly pinpoint the launch location using radar and then strike back with artillery.

Col Nicholson’s area of responsibility includes the border provinces from Nuristan to Paktika.

"We do not allow the enemy to fire with impunity on our soldiers, and we have the inherent right of self-defence," he said, speaking by video teleconference from his headquarters at Jalalabad airfield.

"Even if those fires are coming from across the border (in Pakistan), we have the right to defend ourselves, and we exercise that right." He added later: "We do fire missions across the border."

Col Nicholson said his forces were not required to get approval from Pakistan before responding to an attack. But he emphasised that efforts were made to warn Pakistani forces along the border to clear the intended target area before US artillery was launched.

"We make every effort to communicate with the Pakistan military." Col Nicholson said the computers used to target the US artillery were programmed with the map coordinates of Pakistani border posts.

"If a fire mission is being called that would impact on a Pakistan border post, we typically will not shoot -- we will not shoot that mission," he said.

The United States had given radios to Pakistan border posts so they could communicate with US forces in Afghanistan, he said. “If US troops are unable to contact them directly before launching an artillery assault, an illumination round is fired first as a mean of warning the Pakistanis that high explosives will follow,” Col Nicholson added.