Pakistan's foreign minister says his country "has made its point" by blocking NATO's supply route to Afghanistan in protest over a deadly U.S. attack on its troops, and that the time has come to move on with U.S. ties.
Hina Rabbani Khar did not say whether Pakistan will reopen the route, but her comments at a press conference on May 14 came as negotiators from Pakistan and the United States were holding intense talks on whether to reopen the border to convoys carrying supplies for NATO troops in Afghanistan.
Discussions were scheduled to resume this week, U.S. Embassy spokesman Mark Stroh said.
Pakistani cabinet members and senior military officials were expected to meet on May 15 to discuss whether to allow the supplies to resume.
On May 13, the commander of NATO-led forces in Afghanistan, U.S. General John Allen, met with the Pakistani and Afghan army chiefs, General Ashfaq Kayani and General Sher Muhammad Karimi, for talks on border security.
Those talks were held in Rawalpindi, near Islamabad.
It has been six months since Pakistan closed the route in retaliation for U.S. air strikes that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers in the northwest.
Washington says the November attack was an accident and has expressed its condolences, but has so far rejected Pakistani demands that it apologize and stop drone strikes in the country.
Hina Rabbani Khar did not say whether Pakistan will reopen the route, but her comments at a press conference on May 14 came as negotiators from Pakistan and the United States were holding intense talks on whether to reopen the border to convoys carrying supplies for NATO troops in Afghanistan.
Discussions were scheduled to resume this week, U.S. Embassy spokesman Mark Stroh said.
Pakistani cabinet members and senior military officials were expected to meet on May 15 to discuss whether to allow the supplies to resume.
On May 13, the commander of NATO-led forces in Afghanistan, U.S. General John Allen, met with the Pakistani and Afghan army chiefs, General Ashfaq Kayani and General Sher Muhammad Karimi, for talks on border security.
Those talks were held in Rawalpindi, near Islamabad.
It has been six months since Pakistan closed the route in retaliation for U.S. air strikes that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers in the northwest.
Washington says the November attack was an accident and has expressed its condolences, but has so far rejected Pakistani demands that it apologize and stop drone strikes in the country.
