ISLAMABAD, Jan 3: Tension is running high in the Pakistan, US military ranks following an armed clash between the two sides along the Pakistan-Afghan border that resulted in a bomb attack on Pakistani territory by the American forces, Dawn learnt through reliable sources on Friday.

A telephonic conference at the highest-level had been planned to defuse the tension, the sources said.

The US Centcom chief and President Pervez Musharraf or Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee Gen Aziz will discuss the issue in the telephonic conference likely to take place on Saturday, they said.

US spokeswoman in Bagram gave a terse message to the head of the Bagram-based Pakistan military’s liaison unit on Thursday, the sources claimed.

The US spokeswoman told the Pakistani colonel heading the three-officer strong unit that the message was from “the very top,” meaning the Centcom chief, Tommy Franks, himself wanted the message conveyed to Gen Aziz.

The Pakistani colonel and the US spokeswoman are reportedly not on speaking terms after their talks the previous day.

The crux of Tommy Frank’s message was that “enough is enough” and that the US would not tolerate any firing from the Pakistan side and would go for a hot pursuit next time it happened.

“Pakistan is not Afghanistan,” was Pakistan’s rebuttal to Tommy Frank’s message as mid-level communication continued between Pakistani and US forces involved in the anti-terrorist operations. The Americans were warned by Pakistan that “hot pursuit” across the border would provoke Pakistani firing and the Americans would have to face the consequences of such a misadventure.

Pakistan will respond appropriately to stop violation of its territory or airspace by US forces through operations not cleared by the Pakistani authorities, said a senior Pakistani official associated with the ongoing US-led operation.

Referring to the air attack of Dec 29, the official said: “They (the US authorities) have to ensure that such an incident is not repeated,” warning that the US anti-terror campaign would come to a grinding halt if Pakistan stopped cooperating with it.

Pakistan has already lodged a written protest with the US ambassador in Islamabad. As an immediate damage-control measure, the ambassador requested an appointment with the governor and corps commander Peshawar to discuss the situation. She met them on Jan 2 in Peshawar.

Pakistani authorities maintain that the Dec 29 bomb attack by the US forces is a violation of the understanding reached between Pakistan and the US authorities that US forces would not carry out any operation on Pakistani soil.

During a visit to Pakistan in mid 2002, Tommy Franks was clearly told by the Pakistan government that deployment of airpower over Pakistan territory would not be allowed. Tommy Franks had then said that he was aware of Pakistan’s sensitivities in this regard and would respect them.

The firing incident followed by the US air strike has raised questions within Pakistani circles of how a repeat of such incidents can be prevented. Washington too recognizes that the US operation cannot be conducted without the active Pakistani cooperation through intelligence and information.