Pakistan agrees to reopen NATO supply routes

     The routes have been closed since last November when a U.S. raid killed 24 Pakistani soldiers. Among the conditions for reopening the routes was an apology for this event. Hilary Clinton is reported to have apologized in a telephone conversation with Hina Khat the Pakistani Foreign Minister. '
   Clinton said:. "We are sorry for the losses suffered by the Pakistani military. We are committed to working closely with Pakistan and Afghanistan to prevent this from ever happening again." Sherry Rehman the Pakistani ambassador to the U.S. said:. "We appreciate Secretary Clinton's statement, and hope that bilateral ties can move to a better place from here. I am confident that both countries can agree on many critical issues, especially on bringing peace to the region,"
    There is no mention of any cessation of drone attacks. Obviously the Pakistani side had not intention of making their cessation a real condition  for reopening the routes. Apparently NATO also rejected a huge hike in fees for transport. However, there will be the release of about a billion in military aid as part of the payment for Pakistani operations against militants. No payment has been made since 2010 and Pakistan puts the bill at over 3 billion. The Pakistani Taliban will attack the convoys one they begin again. For more see this article.
   Even with losses from attacks the Pakistani routes are much cheaper than alternative routes through the north.