RAWALPINDI: General James N. Mattis, Commander of the United States Central Command and General John Allen, Commander of ISAF in Afghanistan, have arrived in Pakistan 
to improve border coordination, the army said Wednesday.
The visit formally revived top level military to military contacts between the two countries after the U.S. air strikes on two Pakistani border posts, which had killed 24 soldiers.
“General James N. Mattis, and General John Allen will call on Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, today,†a military statement said.
The attack on Pakistan posts in Mohmand tribal region on November 26 had deadlocked all high level contacts and Islamabad had earlier insisted that the contacts would remain suspended unless the parliamentary review of relationship with the US is completed.
“It is the first high level meeting after Salala incident and will focus on the inquiry into the incident and improvements in border coordination procedures,†the Pakistan army said.
General Mattis said earlier this month that he will discuss re-opening of NATO supply routes with Pakistani officials.
Testifying at a hearing of the US Senate Armed Services Committee this month, General Mattis had said that the U.S. did need ground lines through Pakistan, and that he would be meeting Pakistani officials on his trip.
Talking about Pakistan’s pending parliamentary review and US-Pakistan relations, General Mattis said that he remained optimistic that they would make progress in this regard.
General Mattis said that co-operation with Pakistan continues on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border after the NATO airstrike. He added that the border coordination meetings had been taking place at different levels.
The visit comes a day after Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani met President Barrack Obama in Seoul, the capital of South Korea, and discussed bilateral relations.
President Obama welcomed Pakistan’s parliamentary review but insisted that Islamabad should also pursue a balanced approach to respect the security concerns of the United States.
