Pakistan will build a fence and lay mines at “selected places” on its side of the border with Afghanistan to restrict cross-border movement, Foreign Secretary Riaz Muhammad Khan said on Tuesday. “This is a part of our established policy. We are taking measures to prevent any militant activity from Pakistan inside Afghanistan,” Khan said in a press briefing at the Foreign Office. The Pakistan Army has been tasked to work out the modalities of the project. The 2,400-kilometre Pak-Afghan border has 700 crossing points.Khan did not give any time frame for the completion of the project, nor mentioned the specific areas to be fenced or mined. However, he said that no foreign country was funding the project.
“Mining (the border) is easier and can be done expeditiously while fencing, of course, requires a huge budget and time. However, the decision will be taken after we get suggestions from the armed forces,” the foreign secretary said.
“There is an extraordinary situation which needs extraordinary measures,” he said. “Pakistan needs no permission or agreement with any country, including Afghanistan, while carrying out any such project within its territorial boundaries. We have publicly stated this many times.” He said Pakistan had also decided to strictly monitor Afghan refugees camps, expedite the registration and return of Afghan refugees, and relocate some camps close to the border. It had also decided to expand the Frontier Corps, increase the strength of Levies and their deployment along the Pak-Afghan border.