Washington: Pakistan's failure to put pressure on Taliban forces on the country's border with Afghanistan is "a concern," said US Defence Secretary Robert Gates.

A 40 per cent rise in violence in east Afghanistan in the first five months of 2008 "is a matter of concern, of real concern, and I think that one of the reasons that we re seeing the increase ... Is more people coming across the border from the frontier area," Gates told a news conference.

He said "the ability of the Taliban and other insurgents to cross that border and not being under any pressure from the Pakistani side of the border is clearly a concern."

The issue "needs to be addressed with the Pakistani government."

Violence in the region is on the upswing, despite the presence of some 70,000 troops multinational troops in Afghanistan, some under US command, some under NATO.

Source : PTI