Break Afghan-India ‘nexus’, Pak tells US

Reiterating its charge that India and Afghanistan had formed a nexus against it, Pakistan has asked the US to help break the alleged alliance “for the sake of regional peace”, a media report here said on Monday.

A senior official at the Pakistan Foreign Ministry said that during recent contacts Washington was urged to play its role to defuse Pakistan-Afghan tension.

“We know the US has a stake in Afghanistan. It (the US) wants peace between us but India is trying to disrupt these efforts. We have asked them to take care of India if they can. New Delhi is obviously pulling their (Kabul's) strings,” the official, who remains in contact with Washington, told The Nation.

He said the US was concerned over the recent firing incident along the Chaman border and “appreciated Pakistan's restraint”.

“We told them the nation was furious over the firing from Afghan side, which left several dead. We obviously do not want the situation to get out of hand,” the official added. Earlier, Pakistan declared a 4-km area adjacent to the Chaman border with Afghanistan a “no-go area” amid the tensions.

Last week, Afghan forces opened fired at Frontier Corps personnel securing a population census team, killing 10 FC troopers.

Pak had declared a 4-km area adjacent to Chaman border with Afghanistan a “no-go area” amid tensions