Afghan, Pakistani senior leaders hold bilateral meeting on border security

By Capt. Matthew E McMillan (1st CAV)January 23, 2015

Afghan, Pakistani senior leaders hold bilateral meeting on border security
Senior officials from Afghanistan, Pakistan, the United States, and NATO countries discuss border security and military cooperation concerning Afghanistan and Pakistan Jan. 22 at the headquarters of NATO Train, Advise, Assist Command - South at Kanda... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan - Senior security officials from Afghanistan and Pakistan held a bilateral meeting Jan. 22 at Kandahar Airfield, Afghanistan, to discuss how to improve security and border cooperation.

The NATO Train, Advise, Assist Command - South (TAAC-S) hosted the delegations at the unit's headquarters. Attendees included representatives from Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Pakistan's Southern Command, while the Afghan delegation comprised of the Afghan Ministry of Defense, the Afghan National Army's 205th and 215th Corps, the Afghan National Police, and the Afghan Border Police. In addition to the TAAC-S Commanding General, Brig. Gen. Viet Luong, Brig. Gen. Giovanni Parmiggiani and several members of the NATO Resolute Support Mission, headquartered in Kabul, attended.

During the meeting, the officials discussed cross-border cooperation and the two nations' mutual interests on border security.

Topics of discussion centered around improving cooperation and complementary operations along the border. The parties further discussed the common enemy they face and emphasized the close geographic and cultural ties between the two countries.

NATO Train, Advise, Assist Command - East hosted a similar event Jan. 18 at Operational Base Fenty in eastern Afghanistan. That event marked the first time in years that corps-level commanders from Afghanistan and Pakistan had met on such a scale. According to NATO officials, these meetings represent a giant leap in future military-to-military bilateral relationships between Pakistan and Afghanistan.