LANDI KOTAL: US Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte and Assistant Secretary of State Richard Boucher met tribal chiefs at the Khyber Rifles mess in Landi Kotal on Wednesday.

Sources said the elders from the Khyber Agency impressed upon the US to avoid use of force in the region while pursuing the war against terrorism.

Former minister of state Malik Waris Khan Afridi said that tribesmen were peace-loving people who wanted to resolve the issue and end the conflict through their time-tested institution of jirga.

He assured the US officials that most of the tribesmen were against terrorism and were ready to work for eradicating it through dialogue.

According to the sources, the tribal chiefs warned that any direct action by the United States and allied forces in the tribal territory would have disastrous consequences. They said that the former USSR had sent its troops into Afghanistan against the wishes of the majority of the Afghan people and it was forced out of that country.

“The US and the government of Pakistan should take the tribal people into confidence before taking any decision about curbing militancy in these regions,” the elders were reported to have suggested.

“We don’t want to be dictated by the ‘ill-informed’ bureaucracy of Islamabad how to deal with internal issues of tribal areas,” they said, adding that they wanted to resolve all the ‘thorny’ issues in keeping with their customs and traditions.

The sources said Mr Negroponte assured the tribal elders of his government’s desire to continue supporting development work in tribal areas.

“The US too wants peace in your area,” he said.

He said the US would provide more funds for generating economic activities in the region.

Referring to the Feb 18 election, Mr Negroponte said his government respected the verdict of the electorate and would support the new government.

He said the US government wanted to develop the tribal areas and spend more in the education sector.

The US team also met NWFP governor Owais Ahmed Ghani and senior officials of the Frontier Corps.

A spokesman for the Governor’s House said Mr Negroponte and Mr Ghani discussed the situation in the region.