ISLAMABAD (Islamweb & News Agencies) - General Tommy Franks, commander of the U.S. Army's Central Command, discussed the Afghan war with Pakistani military ruler General Pervez Musharraf on Monday, the foreign ministry said. (Read photo caption below)
Franks met Musharraf, who is head of the armed forces, along with other senior Pakistani officers, during the U.S. general's brief visit to the capital, Islamabad, spokesman Mohammad Riaz Khan said.
Franks, who is overseeing the war in Afghanistan as head of Central Command, arrived earlier in the day as part of a tour of states affected by the Afghan crisis but U.S. officials provided few details.
A source at the Uzbek Foreign Ministry told Reuters Franks would arrive in the capital Tashkent late on Monday and begin meetings on Tuesday.
He is due to meet the Uzbek defense and foreign ministers, and may also see President Islam Karimov. Uzbekistan has provided three bases for U.S. forces.
Franks' tour last week took him to the Gulf states of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
Pakistan has become a vital military ally in the U.S. attack on Afghanistan, providing intelligence, access to its air space and the use of three different airbases for search and rescue operations.
The Central Command is based in Tampa, Florida, and oversees U.S. military activity throughout the Middle East, Central and South Asia and Northeast Africa.
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US Central Command wants more facilities in Pakistan