Transport cost rises as Pakistan closes roads
12 May 2012 7:03 AM GMT
An alternate supply route being used by the US to transport goods to its troops in Afghanistan following Pakistan's closure of ground lines of communication is costing Pentagon an additional USD 38 million per month, a top Senator has said.
'We have learnt the Department of Defence will face at least a USD 1.3 billion bill as a result of the rise in fuel prices. This price increase has been exacerbated by the continued closure of the Pakistan border, forcing supply convoys for our force in Afghanistan to use the Northern Distribution Network at an increased expense of about USD 38 million per month,' Senator Claire McCaskill said.
The Northern Distribution Network is a series of commercially-based logistical arrangements connecting Baltic and Caspian ports with Afghanistan via Russia, Central Asia, and the Caucasus. McCaskill's comments on the issue at a Congressional hearing on current readiness of US troops yesterday came in the wake of Pakistan shutting down the NATO supply routes following a cross-border air raid that killed 24 of its soldiers in November last year.
Responding to the concerns of US lawmakers, Gen Philip Breedlove, Vice Chief of the Air Force, cautioned about the additional financial burden the US forces might have to face if Pakistan does not reopens the ground lines of communication (GLOCs). 'If we do not get movement in the Pak GLOCs - as you know, much of the job of bringing home all of the equipment will fall to the backs of the Air Force to haul out,' he said. Â
'We have learnt the Department of Defence will face at least a USD 1.3 billion bill as a result of the rise in fuel prices. This price increase has been exacerbated by the continued closure of the Pakistan border, forcing supply convoys for our force in Afghanistan to use the Northern Distribution Network at an increased expense of about USD 38 million per month,' Senator Claire McCaskill said.
The Northern Distribution Network is a series of commercially-based logistical arrangements connecting Baltic and Caspian ports with Afghanistan via Russia, Central Asia, and the Caucasus. McCaskill's comments on the issue at a Congressional hearing on current readiness of US troops yesterday came in the wake of Pakistan shutting down the NATO supply routes following a cross-border air raid that killed 24 of its soldiers in November last year.
Responding to the concerns of US lawmakers, Gen Philip Breedlove, Vice Chief of the Air Force, cautioned about the additional financial burden the US forces might have to face if Pakistan does not reopens the ground lines of communication (GLOCs). 'If we do not get movement in the Pak GLOCs - as you know, much of the job of bringing home all of the equipment will fall to the backs of the Air Force to haul out,' he said. Â
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