Afghan refugee return fund sought

Parts of the joint border are a hotbed of the Taleban's insurgency

Pakistan has called for a multi-billion dollar fund to allow millions of Afghan refugees living in Pakistan to return home.

The Pakistani foreign minister said the return of the refugees would remove a safe haven for the Taleban.

He said that such a rehabilitation project would cost the US between four to five billion dollars.

The minister denied claims that Pakistan was not doing enough to stop the Taleban from grouping on its soil.

No easy refuge

In a BBC interview, Foreign Minister Khursheed Kasuri said the return of an estimated two to three million refugees would be money well spent.

"We've suggested to the Americans that they are spending so much money, maybe it would cost $4-5bn to create the right conditions for these people to go back to Afghanistan," Mr Kasuri said.

"If you take the refugees away, let's say, in two or three years, then at least once these people go away, there will be no easy refuge."

Refugees prepare to go home

He said that if the international community could be persuaded to co-operate, then conditions could be created to rehabilitate the refugees.

On Friday Mr Kasuri met his Afghan counterpart, Rangeen Dadfar Spanta in Islamabad.

Mr Spanta said that progress had been made in their talks on combating Taleban-related violence.

He said that while differences between them still existed, they had agreed to try to improve contacts and remove misunderstandings.

Mr Kasuri welcomed the talks, and said the two sides should meet more often.