The only solution to AfghanistanÂ’s complaints of alleged cross-border terrorism from Pakistan is that it should take back the three million Afghan refugees who live in Pakistan and move freely between the two countries, Foreign Office spokeswoman Tasnim Aslam said on Monday. Addressing a weekly press briefing, Aslam said that Pakistan was making all possible efforts to stem the movement of the Taliban and had set up 97 check posts on its side of the border for this purpose. However, she said that the Taliban were Afghan nationals and it was not easy to distinguish them from ordinary Afghans. Aslam said that only the Afghan government could resolve the problems inside its territory, adding that Pakistan had proposed fencing and selective mining of the border, but Afghanistan had rejected these suggestions. She said that the international community must encourage national reconciliation in Afghanistan and should prepare a plan for the economic rehabilitation of south and southeastern Afghanistan similar to the one being made for other parts of the country.
About Gen AbizaidÂ’s remarks that the war on terrorism could become a third world war, Aslam said that challenges existed, but they could not be faced through military action only. The FO spokeswoman said that Britain would provide Pakistan $900 million in development assistance spread over a period of three years. Aslam said that the Pakistani and Indian foreign secretaries had discussed the opening of consulates in Karachi and Mumabi during their recent meeting, adding that progress on the issue was hindered by the fact that Pakistan had yet to find a location for its consulate in Mumbai.