ISLAMABAD, Nov 11: Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz on Thursday welcomed the statement by his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh about troop reduction in the Indian-held Kashmir.

When asked to comment on the news, the prime minister told reporters at the PAF base before flying to Cairo that he had not seen the statement "but reduction of troops by any country is welcome".

Pakistan military spokesman Major General Shaukat Sultan said: "We do not know the level of intended troops reduction, but on the face of it we welcome the move as a confidence-building measure."

Gen Sultan, who is also press secretary to President Pervez Musharraf, said the details of how many troops India might withdraw and in which sectors of the disputed territory were yet to be known. -Agencies

Our Reporter adds: Foreign Office spokesman Masood Khan said: "Pakistan would be looking forward to this decision's physical manifestation in the coming days and weeks, which would be closely monitored."

However, he took exception to allegations of cross-border infiltration and said: "We reject India's baseless contention about the so-called infiltration across the LOC or the 'infrastructure of terrorism' or the 'launching bases'.

"These are fallacies. A good CBM like this should not have been sullied with such an incorrect characterization. The real priority should be to put an end to human rights violations in Kashmir," Mr Khan said.

He said Pakistan welcomed Indian prime minister's announcement about the Indian government's intent to reduce troops in Kashmir.

"This is a step in the right direction," said the FO spokesman.

Troop reduction can reinforce the process of dialogue and confidence building between Pakistan and India, he said.

Pakistan has always maintained that Kashmiris should be made part of this process.

"The reduction of troops should ease tensions in Kashmir and boost confidence among Kashmiris. We also hope that this decision will be the first step towards the promotion and protection of Kashmiris' human rights."

He said Pakistan saw Delhi's decision to reduce troops as a good development in the backdrop of the meeting between President General Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in New York.

AFP resumes: The Indian army has been reluctant to disclose the size of its troop deployment in the restive state, but has variously given figures ranging between 200,000 and 300,000.

Freedom fighters and Pakistan, however, claim the numbers more realistically range between 500,000 and 700,000.