Pentagon pulled a negotiation team out of Pakistan on Monday after a negotiation over a NATO supply route failed to materialize.
The route in question was used by coalition forces for transporting supplies by land from Karachi to Afghanistan until November, when Pakistan shut its border to NATO convoys after an air strike mistakenly killed 24 Pakistani soldiers. Since then, Pakistan has demanded a fee increase from $250 to $5,000 for every truck that crosses the border. The United States has offered to pay $1,000.
Talks to reopen the route are stalled, but the withdrawal of the team of "low-level" specialists does not indicate a significant break in U.S.-Pakistan relations.
