Posted on 06/24/2002 5:30:20 AM PDT by JohnHuang2
ISLAMABAD, Jun 24, 2002 (Kyodo via COMTEX) -- Gen. Tommy Franks, top commander of U.S. troops in Afghanistan, met President Gen. Pervez Musharraf on Monday for talks on the latest developments in the U.S.-led war on terrorism in Afghanistan.
The talks were "focused on the prevailing geostrategic environment in the region" and Franks expressed his appreciation for the assistance being offered by Pakistan and its armed forces to U.S. and allied troops in the war on terrorism in Afghanistan, the Defense Ministry said in a press release.
"Gen. Franks made particular mention of the excellent cooperation between the armed forces of Pakistan and the United States, which had contributed manifold to the apprehension of a large number of terrorists," the press release says.
U.S. and Afghan troops are attempting to flush out pockets of Taliban fighters and members of the al-Qaida network led by Osama bin Laden, the alleged mastermind of the Sept. 11 attacks, along Pakistan's border with Afghanistan.
Gen. Mohammad Aziz Khan, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, and U.S. charge d'affaires in Pakistan Nancy Powell also attended the talks held at the Chief Executive Secretariat in Islamabad.
The talks have assumed great significance in the wake of a report Sunday that bin Laden is alive and his terrorist network will carry out attacks soon on U.S. and Jewish targets.
The U.S. media have speculated that bin laden may be hiding in tribal areas of Pakistan bordering Afghanistan, outside the jurisdiction of the Pakistani government.
Franks, who arrived in Pakistan late Sunday, is due to leave for Afghanistan on Monday evening to review security arrangements and ongoing operations by U.S. and allied troops.
In an interview with CNN TV on Sunday, Afghan President Hamid Karzai called for trilateral collaboration among Pakistan, Afghanistan and the United States to apprehend Taliban and al-Qaida fighters still believed to be in hiding in Afghanistan.
The Taliban, which allegedly provided support for al-Qaida, succumbed to the U.S.-led antiterrorism campaign in Afghanistan last December following the Sept. 11 attacks.
(EDS: UPDATING)
2002 Kyodo News (c) Established 1945
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