Brussels - NATO and Pakistan agree that winning over the hearts and minds of tribesmen living in Pakistan's lawless border with Afghanistan is crucial to defeating the Taliban, the transatlantic alliance's top military commander said Friday.

Valencia, Spain  - Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, secretary general of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), said Tuesday that the alliance should re-evaluate its relations with Russia without severing them.

The relations should be reconsidered after Russia's "disproportionate" use of force in Georgia, but not broken because they were a "strategic asset," Scheffer said at the
54th annual meeting of the NATO parliamentary assembly.

The assembly adopted a resolution urging Russia to respect the sovereignty of other nations as about 300 delegates from 50 countries were wrapping up their five-day meeting in the eastern Spanish city of Valencia.

Lahore, Nov 16 : Political authorities reportedly suspended supplies to NATO forces in Afghanistan via Torkham Border on Saturday, due to security concerns on the Pak-Afghan Highway.

According to a private TV channel report, hundreds of trucks and containers had been stopped in Peshawar after the suspension of the supply.

The supplies had been suspended following incidents of looting of trucks and containers carrying oil and other supplies for the NATO forces battling Taliban in Afghanistan, the Daily Times quoted Khyber Agency Political Agent Tariq Hayat as saying. 

Valencia, Spain - Jose Lello, president of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) parliamentary assembly, on Friday urged the West to adopt a new strategy in Afghanistan.

Lello met the press at the start of the 54th annual meeting of the assembly, which was bringing together more than 300 delegates from 50 countries in Valencia, eastern Spain.

Barack Obama's election as US president was likely to lead to an increase of troops in Afghanistan, Lello said.

Islamabad, Nov 14 : The Pakistan Senate has reportedly rejected the US embassy''s invitation for the Senate Defence and Foreign Affairs Committee to attend a key NATO briefing on the current situation in Afghanistan. The briefing is to be given by General David McKiernan, the commander of the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan.

The House said that the invitation was “not in keeping with the best traditions” of diplomatic engagement and political dialogue.

Tallinn - NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer restated the military alliance's desire to see Ukraine join its ranks at a high-level conference being held in the Estonian capital, Tallinn, on Thursday.

In his opening speech, de Hoop Scheffer said the talks were taking place at a special moment in NATO-Ukraine relations.