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Pakistan might soon move troops from border with India

June 16, 2009 10:02 IST
Movement of troops might soon be seen on Pakistan's eastern border with India, powerful US senator John Kerry has said, hoping it would result in reduction of tension between the two neighbours.
     
Addressing New York-based think-tank the Council on Foreign Relations, Kerry, Chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee said Islamabad might move some troops from its border with India to the "guts of Pakistan".
     
"We just had an election in India. We are just in a position to begin to, hopefully, move some troops back from the border, shift some troops into the guts of Pakistan; hopefully, that can make a difference," Kerry said.
     
Kerry, who was addressing the issue of climate change, also mentioned the situation in India and Pakistan. Last week the Special US Envoy for Pakistan and Afghanistan Richard Holbrooke had said that Pakistan has moved some of its troops from on its border with India to its western border.
     
Pakistan is in the middle of a massive military offensive against the Taliban in the North West Frontier Province and is planning to extend the operation to Taliban stronghold of Waziristan.
     
The US has asked Pakistan to move its troops from the east to the west and the northwest of the country to combat terrorism.
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