Pakistani Supply routes used by coalition forces to move equipment in and out of Afghanistan have been re-opened following a months long freeze, the U.S. government announced Tuesday.
The routes were closed by the Pakistani government after the U.S. performed an airstrike within the country’s borders in late November, killing two dozen Pakistani soldiers.
While the U.S. maintains that NATO forces were engaged initially, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton offered an apology Tuesday, a concession that was a key sticking point in negotiations to re-open the routes.
During the closure, the U.S. military maintained that the Afghan campaign was ultimately unaffected due to the use of alternative routes from the north. However, Gen. John Allen, the U.S. commander in Afghanistan, predicted during a press conference in late May that the northern route was twice as expensive.
Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta heralded the decision and reaffirmed that the U.S. will continue to focus on improving relations with Pakistan in the days ahead.
