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Pakistani Military Officials Meet U.S. Team
Tuesday, September 25, 2001 (18:30 JST)
By Tahir Ikram / JapanToday.com

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan
Pakistan's military ruler, General Pervez Musharraf, will meet a European Union delegation on Tuesday while his military officials hold meetings with a U.S. defence team focusing on direct action against Osama bin Laden.

Top European Union officials, led by Belgian Foreign Minister Louis Michel, were due to meet Musharraf as part of a whirlwind tour of Islamic countries to drum up support for a global anti-terror campaign.

The flurry of diplomatic activity was accompanied by a highly secretive visit by a team of about six U.S. military and other officials to pave the way for any strike against Pakistan's neighbour, Afghanistan, host of Saudi-born dissident bin Laden, prime suspect in the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

Officials refused all comment on the team's discussions but The News said the group, led by Brigadier General Kavin Chilton, was "assessing" the situation and had not come to discuss operational specifics.

"Basically, it is a mid-level U.S. military team and it has come to Pakistan only for assessment of the situation. For deciding specifics, there will be a senior level military team which will visit Pakistan in days to come," The News quoted a senior Pakistani official as saying.
(More: JapanToday.com News Source)

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