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Summary US officials are hesitant to confirm new tariff rates being agreed with Pakistan for NATO trucks.
While addressing a briefing at Pentagon, Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public affairs, George Little refused to comment on the specifics of these discussions. He was asked whether the new rates being quoted in the media, between $1500-$5000 per truck, as and when the NATO supplies resume were accurate or not.It will be inappropriate for me to reveal the negotiations to public when we are in the middle of our discussions with Pakistan. Discussions with Pakistan continue on the reopening of ground supply routes and we have to resolve it soon, he reiterated.We remain hopeful that these routes will remain open, because it is very important for our effort in Afghanistan, he maintained. He, however, asserted that the supplies to NATO troops in Afghanistan were sound currently but it will be helpful if routes from Pakistan are reopened.George Little was also unaware whether Pakistani president Asif Zardari will be meeting any US dignitary separately as well on the sidelines of the forthcoming Chicago summit. Plan of sideline meetings are still being finalised, but Im not aware of any plans of President Obama or Secretary Panetta as yet to meet President Zardari on the sidelines in Chicago, he responded.The spokesperson of the US State Department, Victoria Nuland, in a separate briefing, also declined to confirm these new rates. There is all kinds of crazy stuff in the press one way or the other. We dont consider it productive to be conducting this negotiation from this podium, so I am not going to comment on every stray comment about whats going on, but we are working through all of these various issues with the Pakistani side and well continue to do so, she opined.We are continuing to have discussions with Pakistan, but we are where we were yesterday, she said while indicating that there was no tangible update as such to be shared. My understanding is that teams (part of negotiations from both sides) took a pause today and will resume tomorrow, she revealed while refusing to predict the outcome of these negotiations. I am not going to make a prediction. These negotiations are ongoing. Its most important that we get it, that we get it right and that we do it completely, she firmly stated.Ms Nuland was also non-committal about a fresh security alert issued by the US embassy in Islamabad. We never comment about the security posture of our embassies anywhere in the world. I am not aware of any new alert information, but I would refer you to the embassys website. May be they have done something in the recent hours, she contented.- Contributed by Awais Saleem, Dunya News correspondent in Washington, DC
