WASHINGTON: The United States' apology over Pakistani losses in Salala incident, followed by Islamabad's restoration of its key land routes for NATO supplies, mark a "historic turn" towards building on Pakistan-US relations, Ambassador to the United States Sherry Rehman said.

Appearing on CNN's Situation Room program, the Pakistani diplomat also said the revival of supply routes into landlocked Afghanistan - without levy of any transit charges - underlines her country's commitment to peace in its war and insurgency-hit western neighbor.

"Today and yesterday mark a historic turn in the relationship. We have been able to, I think, turn towards building on this opportunity and halt the downward spiral (in Pakistan-US ties)," she told anchor Wolf Blitzer.

The ambassador's comment referred to an opportunity for revival of relations from deterioration that occured in Pakistan-US ties in the aftermath of killing of 24 Pakistani soldiers in a November 2011 American aerial strike on Salala posts along the Afghan border.

Islamabad agreed to reopen its supply route - closed for seven months since November 26, 2011 incident- after Secretary of State Hillary Clinton apologized over the deaths of Pakistani soldiers in the deadly cross-border incident.

In the CNN interview, Ambassador Rehman dispelled the impression that Pakistan had sought to charge exorbitantly on passage of each NATO container in negotiations prior to the agreement reached this week.

"I don't know where this $ 5000 (a truck) figure has come from.

It's got a life of its own after some speculation in the press," she said.

"There was never any intent to make this one of our negotiations or make price an element of our negotiations. It really wasn't about that," she stressed.

Pakistan is not charging any additional fees on transportation of NATO supplies - something which stands in contrast with other regional countries that charge highly on the passage of NATO supplies through their land.

"We are not going into an architecture of levies or transit fees that other countries do charge and may continue to charge.

"For us, it is a commitment for stabilizing Afghanistan and

its our very major contribution to (establishing) peace in the

region."

Ambassador Rehman also highlighted Pakistan's unparalleled sacrifices in fighting al-Qaeda linked militants over the last decade.

"We certainly don't want to be demonized any more as a country that is holding back. If anything, Pakistan has paid more in terms of life, blood and treasure --- than all joint resources of NATO in Afghanistan."

The top Pakistani diplomat in Washington also clarified there is no new US aid package for Pakistan in return for allowing NATO supplies a corridor through its network of roads.

"I'm not aware of any new aid package. If you're speaking about Coalitions Support Funds, I take this opportunity to disabuse any one of the notions that this is any kind of aid package," she replied, when asked if US decision to release $ 1.1 billion (from Coalition Support Fund) is kind of some aid  package as part of the agreement.

The Coalition support funds, she explained, is the arrangement that was agreed on between Pakistan and the United States for compensation of logistical and other  deployment, and other mobilization on the Western side of the border in support of NATO, ISAF and US forces.

In answer to a question about sentencing of Dr Shakeel Afridi - who worked as part of a CIA campaign to trace whereabouts of Osama bin Laden, before the al-Qaeda chief was killed last year - the Pakistani envoy said the doctor has been indicted on account of his links with a web of militant groups.

Dr Afridi, she said, has the option of recourse to three tiers of courts.

She also noted that Dr Afridi did not know that he was assisting in search of bin Laden. He has not been indicted on charges of working for a foreign intelligence agency, she added.

Ambassador Rehman, who has been striving to convince the Capitol Hill of Pakistan's position and perspective on some contentious issues in Pakistan-US relations, said her country is aware of Congressional concerns on the issue of sentencing of the Pakistani doctor. APP