A hotline has been established to facilitate communication among the presidents of Afghanistan, Pakistan and Turkey "in times of crisis," a Turkish official said Monday. "The hotline has been operational since yesterday (Sunday)," the official said on condition of anonymity but noted that the presidents have not used it yet. "It is designed to help communication among the three capitals in times of crisis," the official added.

The presidents of Afghanistan and Pakistan are due to hold talks in Turkey on Tuesday and Wednesday in a bid to resolve a row after Kabul claimed an attack against its spy chief was planned in Pakistan. The Pakistani foreign ministry rejected the claim and said it was ready to help investigate what it called a criminal act. Turkish President Abdullah Gul will host his Pakistani counterpart Asif Ali Zardari and Karzai during a dinner on Tuesday. The summit in Ankara will be the seventh in Turkey, a Nato member, since the regular consultation mechanism was established in 2007 to encourage both countries to cooperate against extremism.

Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2012