Pakistan expels 18 British military trainers

British High Commission spokesperson says the UK has been asked to withdraw some training teams.

Pakistan has told Britain to pull out some of its military trainers, in what appears to be the latest sign of strained relations with the West after last month's killing of Osama bin Laden by US troops.

"The UK has been asked to withdraw some of its training support teams on a temporary basis by the Pakistani government in response to security concerns," British High Commission spokesman in Islamabad, George Sheriff, told Reuters on Monday.

He said the Pakistan authorities had warned about "security concerns" but he did not elaborate.

The Guardian daily quoted the British Defence Ministry as confirming the withdrawal of at least 18 military advisers who were helping train a poorly equipped paramilitary force, the Frontier Corps, in counter-terrorism.

Since the May 2 raid, Pakistan has been keen to demonstrate ts independence from its Western sponsors and has also drastically scaled back the number of military trainers from its main backer, the United States.

The number of US trainers has been reduced to less than50 from about 120, Pakistani and American officials have said.

The reductions are a signs of a strained alliance that Washington still sees as critical to its success in the war in neighbouring Afghanistan as well as the fight against al Qaeda and its affiliates.

The army still enjoys high approval ratings in Pakistan, but its critics blame it for cultivating  militants in the past for use against arch-rival India, who are now increasingly slipping out of its control and turning on Pakistani authorities.

The Frontier Corps has also come in for criticism. The Guardian reported that it has been accused of human rights violations in Balochistan, where five unarmed Chechens were shot to death in May at a checkpost in Quetta. The government says it is investigating.

The Guardian reported that the British trainers had been based near Quetta in Balochistan at a British-funded base, working alongside six American advisers training batches of 360recruits in 12-week courses.