QUETTA, Sept 24: Federal Minister for States and Frontier Regions (SAFRON) Sardar Yar Mohammad Rind has said that Pakistan had deployed army along its western border to ensure security during the presidential election in Afghanistan.

Speaking at a press conference at his residence on Friday, he said that Pakistan had deployed the army to beef up security in the border areas and ensure peaceful Afghan presidential election on Oct 9.

Replying to a question about the repatriation of Afghan refugees, the Safron minister said that Pakistan wanted the return of all refugees with honour and dignity. Mr Rind said he would visit Geneva on Oct 4 to sign a memorandum of understanding regarding repatriation of the refugees.

Other signatories would be the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the Afghan government, he said, adding that Pakistan wanted that all Afghan refugees should return home by 2006.

He said all the new refugee camps established after 9/11 in the border town of Chaman had been dismantled and the inhabitants had been shifted to Afghanistan under special package of the UNHCR.

Referring to the issue of president's military uniform, he said Punjab and Sindh assemblies had adopted resolutions requesting President Gen Pervez Musharraf to keep both the offices of the COAS and the president because the current situation demanded so.

He said Chief Minister Jam Yousuf withdrew the resolution after consulting the coalition partners in Balochistan. Mr Rind said that after consultation with allies and adopting better strategy a resolution would be moved again in the Balochistan Assembly.

The Safron minister said that a resolution on uniform's issue would be moved in the National Assembly when PML chief Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain would take a decision.

Regarding 15-point charter of demands presented by Nawab Akbar Khan Bugti for talks on Balochistan issue, Mr Rind said the federal government wanted to resolve all the issues of the province and President Musharraf was taking personal interest in the uplift of Balochistan.

He said the government would hold talks and try to accommodate maximum demands of Nawab Bugti.