ISLAMABAD – The Foreign Office (FO) has responded over the news of clashesbetween Pakistan and Afghanistan Forces on the border areas.
Foreign Office rejected the claims made by Kabul regarding the allegedclashes between Pakistani and Afghan security forces along the borderarea, *RadioPakistanlink>*reported.
Following the reports of suspected clashes circulating on Afghan media, thePakistan Embassy in Kabul also rubbished the claims about any clashestaking place between the two forces, and Pakistan Army allegedly crossingthe Durand Line over to Afghanistan.
Unverified reports started circulating on Wednesday over various Afghanmedia outlets, alleging that a number of Pakistan soldiers ─ seven in someplaces and 12 in others ─ lost their lives in clashes with Afghan forcesand that one Afghan police official was also injured.
Furthermore, the Afghan news outlets alleged that Pakistani forces hadcrossed the Durand Line into Paktia province, a claim rubbished by thePakistan Embassy in Kabul. “Pakistan respects the sovereignty andterritorial integrity of Afghanistan,” said the embassy.
There has been little change in Kabul’s acrimonious tone towards Pakistandespite its Interior Minister Wais Ahmad Barmak and National Directorate ofSecurity (NDS) chief Masoom Stanekzai’s visit to Islamabad on January 31,with a ‘personal message’ from President Ashraf Ghani.
During the meeting, both sides agreed to cooperate in the investigationinto a series of deadly attacks that rattled Kabul, a couple of which wereclaimed by the Taliban.