Karzai, Zardari to hold talks in Turkey

Afghan President Hamid Karzai is holding talks with his Pakistani counterpart Asif Ali Zardari on border security and stronger cooperation between the two countries to fight Islamist extremism in the region.Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari arrived here Tuesday for Turkish-sponsored talks with Afghan counterpart Hamid Karzai on boosting cooperation against Islamist extremists, a Pakistani diplomat said.The trilateral meeting -- the third round of fence-mending talks between the two troubled neighbours in Turkey since 2007 -- will be held Wednesday, chaired by Turkish President Abdullah Gul.Karzai was expected to arrive late Tuesday from The Hague where he has been attending an international conference on stabilising his insurgency-hit nation.The talks will also be attended by foreign ministers, army chiefs and intelligence chiefs from the three countries, a Turkish diplomat said on condition of anonymity.Afghanistan says much of its insurgent violence is planned in Pakistan, and, along with the United States, has accused its neighbour of not doing enough to stop militants crossing the border.Pakistan rejects those accusations and says more than 1,500 of its troops have been killed at the hands of Islamist extremists since 2002.Pakistan's northwestern tribal regions have become a safe haven for extremists who fled Afghanistan after the US-led invasion toppled the hardline Taliban regime in late 2001.