Maintaining supply lines into Afghanistan is key to the success of NATO and U.S. operations in a country where, unlike Iraq, local supplies are extremely limited. This fact was part of the peril caused by the Pakistan government’s recent 11-day closing of the Torkham border crossing at the Khyber Pass .
Images from commercial satellite company DigitalGlobal showed a three-mile-long traffic jam of oil tankers and supply trucks trying to cross the Torkham border pass into Afghanistan. The jam left the trucks vulnerable, and several NATO oil tankers were attacked by militants claiming to be part of Mujahid-e-Islami Buraq, The News International reported.
The pass was closed after a NATO helicopter killed two Pakistani soldiers in September, who allegedly fired their guns to alert the helicopter of their positions. Pakistan reopened the supply line on Oct. 9, following an Oct. 6 apology from U.S. officials .
Two days later, on Oct. 11, The Nation reported that new trade routes will be established along the Pakistani border, following the construction of new checkpoints. An unnamed source told the publication that the intention of the routes is to ensure NATO supplies can get through if other passes are closed in the future.
Pakistan Chief Minister Ameer Haidar Khan Hoti stated the same day that if NATO does not respect Pakistan’s sovereignty in the future, it may face more trouble, Pakistani DAWN Media Group reported.
The present relationship between the United States and Pakistan is not a profound new development, however, but rather the surfacing of ongoing tensions.
For the United States, Pakistan plays a vital role in the war in Afghanistan. “In fact, there is no security relationship in the world today more important than the relationship between the United States military and the military of Pakistan,” House Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton said in an April 29 hearing.
Images from commercial satellite company DigitalGlobal showed a three-mile-long traffic jam of oil tankers and supply trucks trying to cross the Torkham border pass into Afghanistan. The jam left the trucks vulnerable, and several NATO oil tankers were attacked by militants claiming to be part of Mujahid-e-Islami Buraq, The News International reported.
The pass was closed after a NATO helicopter killed two Pakistani soldiers in September, who allegedly fired their guns to alert the helicopter of their positions. Pakistan reopened the supply line on Oct. 9, following an Oct. 6 apology from U.S. officials .
Two days later, on Oct. 11, The Nation reported that new trade routes will be established along the Pakistani border, following the construction of new checkpoints. An unnamed source told the publication that the intention of the routes is to ensure NATO supplies can get through if other passes are closed in the future.
Pakistan Chief Minister Ameer Haidar Khan Hoti stated the same day that if NATO does not respect Pakistan’s sovereignty in the future, it may face more trouble, Pakistani DAWN Media Group reported.
The present relationship between the United States and Pakistan is not a profound new development, however, but rather the surfacing of ongoing tensions.
For the United States, Pakistan plays a vital role in the war in Afghanistan. “In fact, there is no security relationship in the world today more important than the relationship between the United States military and the military of Pakistan,” House Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton said in an April 29 hearing.
