AFGHANISTAN - July 15 - US To Quell Border Clashes With Pakistani Troops.

Senior US diplomats hold an emergency meeting in Kabul in an attempt to quell clashes between Afghan and Pakistani troops along their 1,600km border. But few doubt that it will take more than one meeting to improve the poisonous relations between Islamabad and Kabul. International peacekeepers have parked armoured vehicles outside Pakistani embassy in Kabul to prevent a repeat of last week's ransacking of the diplomatic mission by Afghan demonstrators. But, inside the compound, Pakistani officials say they still feel under siege. Pakistan claims the authorities in Kabul did little or nothing to prevent the 100-strong mob from storming its embassy. The demonstration, repeated on July 15 but without incident, was organised in protest against an alleged Pakistani military incursion into the country, apparently the latest in a line of such incidents. "The mob attacked, plundered, ransacked and looted the embassy for 45 minutes without anyone stopping them", says Pakistani Ambassador Rustan Shah Mohmand, adding: "We believe this was orchestrated. It is a setback to relations between our two countries". Analysts say that if relations continue to deteriorate, that could undermine US-led efforts to root out terrorist operations along the border between the two countries. Although Washington has publicly praised Pakistan's efforts, many US officials mutter in private that they would like Pakistan to do more. The incident in Kabul also raises questions about the authority of Pres. Hamid Karzai, who telephoned Pakistani Pres. Gen. Pervez Musharraf to apologise for the vandalism and to offer to pay for repairs. Karzai, who is protected by a phalanx of US security guards, heads a government that is still dominated by former commanders of the Northern Alliance that helped the US overthrow the Taliban regime 19 months ago. Pakistan, which sponsored the rise of the Taliban in 1994, promptly withdrew its support following the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the US. But many in Karzai's transitional government suspect that Pakistan turns a blind eye to the continuing terrorist operations of remnants of the Taliban in unruly border areas. Kabul officials say Islamabad is trying to destabilise the government, which has close relations with India, Pakistan's long-standing foe. A senior official in Kabul said: "Pakistan wants the US to believe that it is conducting anti-Taliban operations along the Afghan border. But the Pakistani border incursions are taking place in areas where there is no terrorist activity". The incident also highlights Karzai's tenuous grip over a government in which many of the key ministries are controlled by ethnic Tadjiks from the Northern Alliance. Karzai, a member of a Pashtun ethnic group from which the Taliban were primarily drawn, is often described as merely the "mayor of Kabul" because of his inability to disarm tens of thousands of Northern Alliance militia and warlords who control much of the country. His critics say he should have taken action against officials who allegedly assisted the storming of the embassy last week. In particular, they point to the Central Bank Governor Anwar ul-Haq Ahadi, who addressed the demonstrators before they marched on the embassy. Ahadi told demonstrators: "We will defend each and every inch of the soil and territory of our country". For Mohmand, Karzai's failure to deal with Ahadi is a worrying sign. He said: "I thought central bank governors were supposed to talk about monetary policy. Can you imagine [Alan] Greenspan doing this?" But officials say Karzai is furious with Musharraf, who this month said Karzai's writ did not extend beyond Kabul. Musharraf also said Afghanistan should have a government that reflected all its ethnic groups. This was seen as unhelpful at a time when Karzai is attempting to create an independent professional army and police force.