ISLAMABAD: An Afghan border policeman was killed and two Pakistani soldiers were wounded in an exchange of fire along the border late yesterday officials from both countries said, a clash likely to unsettle already strained ties between the neighbours.
A senior Afghan official said hundreds of additional Afghan troops were sent to a disputed border gate after the exchange of fire, which lasted for more than two hours.
The stakes are high. The United States wants Pakistan to help Kabul lure the Taliban to the negotiating table ahead of the withdrawal of Nato combat troops by the end of 2014.
But it doesn’t take much to strain relations which have been marred by distrust for decades.
The shooting was sparked by an attack on a Pakistani checkpost. The senior Afghan official said trouble started after Pakistani troops attempted to fortify the border gate. Two Afghan border policemen were wounded.
The latest tensions are focused on Pakistan’s building of a military gate which Afghan officials say is inside Afghanistan.
Reuters
