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ISLAMABAD: Military officials from Pakistan and Afghanistan met on Thursday in Peshawar, along with US officials, to discuss a spike in tensions on their lawless border, Pakistan's military said.
“A comprehensive review of the situation was undertaken so as to ensure the sanctity of (the) international border, during the meeting,” the military said in a statement following the meeting of the cross-border working group.
“The Pakistan army proposed to establish a single point of contact with all Afghan national security forces including Afghan border police through a hotline” between the two countries' armies, the statement said.
Pakistan also proposed frequent border flag meetings between local commanders, as well as interaction between tribal elders of villages on each side of the border, it said.
Pakistan said Monday that dozens of Taliban militants had infiltrated from Afghanistan to attack a check post, killing one soldier in the latest cross-border incident.
In Kabul, around 200 Afghans protested last week against Pakistani rocket attacks that officials said had killed dozens of people. Afghanistan has also long complained of Pakistan-based militants launching attacks on its soil.
There are Taliban strongholds on both sides of the border, but Afghan and US officials want Pakistan to do more to eradicate militant sanctuaries in its semi-autonomous tribal belt.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai demanded an end to the attacks when he met the head of Pakistan's army, General Ashfaq Kayani, during a recent visit to Pakistan.
