WAR.WIRE
US military chief due in Pakistan
ISLAMABAD (AFP) Jul 29, 2003
US military chief General Richard Myers is due here Tuesday for talks with senior military officials on defence ties between the two countries' armed forces, officials said.

"General Myers is due in the afternoon on a brief one-day visit," a defence ministry official told AFP.

"It is an overnight visit," US embassy spokesperson, Linda Cheatham, said.

General Myers, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, is visiting Pakistan for "consultations with senior military officials," she told AFP.

Pakistani officials said he will meet with the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, General Mohammad Aziz Khan.

The talks are likely to focus on defence matters and military-to-military cooperation between the two countries, officials said.

The situation in Afghanistan and post-war Iraq is also expected to be discussed.

General Myers is the second high-ranking US military official to visit Pakistan after US general for forces in Iraq and Afghanistan, John Abizaid's July 23 talks with Pakistani officials including President General Pervez Musharraf.

Abizaid, who replaced Tommy Franks as head of US Central Command, lauded US-Pakistani military cooperation and praised the Pakistani army for its role in fighting international terrorism.

Pakistan is a key US ally in the campaign against terror and the two militaries closely coordinate operations to root out al-Qaeda and Taliban remnants in the region bordering Afghanistan.

Islamabad provided at least three airbases to US troops and vital intelligence support to US-led military operations in Afghanistan that led to the ouster of the hardline Taliban regime in late 2001.

Pakistan has captured more than 500 al-Qaeda and Taliban fugitives in the past 20 months, most of whom are now in US custody.

Islamabad has also received a US request for two brigades of Pakistani troops to join peacekeeping work in post-war Iraq.

Pakistan last week said it would consider sending troops if the Iraqi people or their leadership asked for such help.

Previously it had insisted it would consider sending troops to Iraq if cover was provided by either the United Nations, Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) or Gulf Cooperation Countries.

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