“Our target is to complete it [the fence] by end of 2018,” Major General Asif Ghafoor tells VOA. He explained the plan intends to cover up to 2,400 kilometers of the entire Afghan border because the rest cannot possibly be fenced. Afghanistan opposes the fencing project because it historically disputed the colonial-era demarcation drawn up by the British in 1893. “We have shared through [our] Foreign Office a comprehensive action plan document with Afghanistan and subsequent action on this plan will lead to further improvement,” Ghafoor added. Islamabad shared with Kabul last month what it called an “Afghanistan-Pakistan Action Plan for Solidarity” (APAPS) for a “constructive and meaningful” engagement between the two countries.

Source: The Express Tribune December 31, 2017 10:47 UTC