Washington: Pakistan has redeployed a large number of its troops from the border with India to Afghanistan claims US Representative for Af-Pak Richard Holbrooke.
Sources suggest that the redeployment is the result of the Indo-Pak joint statement issues at Sharm-el Shiekh in Egypt.
Holbrooke described the troop redeployment as significant but gave no figures on the number of troops involved or the sector along the border with India.
He also praised the Pakistani government for shifting of forces stationed along the Indian border to the western frontier bordering Afghanistan to fight out the Taliban and al-Qaeda.
"The Pakistanis have moved a very large number of troops from their eastern border to their western border. That's a historically significant redeployment," Holbrooke said at a State Department press briefing on his recent trip to the region.
Holbrooke had visited the two countries last week to have an on the ground assessment of the situation there, after the Pakistan military launched an offensive against the Taliban in the Swat Valley and adjoining areas.
"We don't know exactly to what extent the Pakistani army dispersed or destroyed the enemy. The test of this operation is of course when the refugees return, can they go home, are they safe? And we're just going to have to wait and see," he emphasised.
He added that there was no evidence of India's involvement in Balochistan. He told the State Department Press Corps in Washington on Thursday that Pakistan did not provide any evidence on India role in Balochistan.
Holbrooke gave this statement when he was asked to comment on the meetings he had with Pakistani leaders during his last week’s visit to that country.
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