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ISLAMABAD, June 30: Pakistan would not deploy additional security forces along the Pakistan-Afghan border as already deployed 80,000 troops were sufficient to check the cross-border movement of terrorists, Interior Minister Aftab Ahmed Sherpao said on Friday.
Talking to reporters after attending a ceremony for awarding certificates to 16 police officers who were imparted training by US instructors at the Sihala Police College, the minister also ruled out the possibility of erecting fence on 27,000km Pakistan-Afghanistan border.
Afghanistan has reportedly asked Pakistan to increase security at the border by deploying more troops.
“If Afghanistan is not satisfied with the measures taken by Pakistan, it can deploy its own security force over there” the minister said.
Answering a question about the visit of US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to Pakistan, he said her visit was misinterpreted by some people that she was not satisfied with the role of Pakistan in restoration of peace in the neighbouring country.
GRAND JIRGA: The minister said the government was trying hard to establish a grand Jirga in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) to restore peace over there. In this connection, assistance of political agents and Maliks was being taken, he added.
WAR ON TERROR: He said Pakistan had played the role of a front line state in the war against terrorism and so far had arrested 600 terrorists.
The minister said Pakistan was paying the price of performing a key role in the war as it had become one of the worst victims of terrorism since the September 11, 2001 attack in Washington.
GUANTANAMO BAY: Mr Sherpao said a Pakistani team would leave for Cuba on July 21 to visit US-controlled Guantanamo Bay prison to get detained Pakistani nationals released.
He said recently the International Committee of Red Crescent had provided the figure of Pakistani detainees in Guantanamo Bay which did not match with the number earlier provided by the US authorities.
“We have learnt that some of the Pakistani inmates have been sent to Afghanistan,” he said.
According to the information provided by the US authorities, 29 Pakistanis are still languishing in Guantanamo Bay whereas 69 have been repatriated.
Qudssia Akhlaque adds: The military spokesman said on Friday 10,000 additional troops had been deployed on the country’s western border a few months ago and further deployment was not on the cards.
ISPR Director-General Maj-Gen Shaukat Sultan told Dawn: “The deployment of additional troops, 12 wings of paramilitary and some regular forces, on the border with Afghanistan and Iran was done a few months back.”
When asked to be more specific he said about a couple of months ago and added that the deployment took place when the ISAF expanded its operations to south Afghanistan.
According to him, at present 78,000 to 80,000 troops had been deployed on the western border. “It is not possible to give the exact figure as the number keeps changing with troop redeployment,” he said.
The confusion about additional troop deployment along the Afghan border was created when Foreign Minister Khurshid Kasuri at a joint press conference with the US secretary of state on Tuesday said Pakistan would deploy 10,000 more troops along the Afghan border.
The Foreign Office on Thursday clarified that deployment of 10,000 more troops in the border areas with Afghanistan to which foreign Mr Kasuri had referred been done about a month back.
