Difficult neighbour

AS Pakistan contends with frequent acts of terrorism — many traced to the banned TTP based in Afghanistan — it is understandable that officials here are frustrated with the country’s western neighbour. Talking to foreign media outlets recently, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has said that Pakistan will again strike targets inside Afghanistan if terrorism emanating from that country continues. He has suggested that India and the Afghan Taliban are working in cahoots, waging a ‘proxy war’ against Pakistan. According to the minister, the present circumstances are the result of “what we did” in Afghanistan during the 1980s and post-9/11, a reference to the Afghan jihad and the foreign invasion of Afghanistan after the Sept 11 attacks. He has made such remarks several times in the past. While such reactions from officialdom may be expected due to the high number of terrorist attacks, and Kabul’s frustrating lack of action against violent groups based on Afghan soil, military action of the sort the defence minister is advocating should be absolutely the last resort. In particular, making such comments publicly is ill-advised, despite the obstinance of the other side, and will only serve to further vitiate the atmosphere in the region. That Taliban-ruled Afghanistan has become a hotbed — once again — of global terrorist outfits is beyond dispute. Several UN assessments have confirmed this, with the last Security Council report saying that the TTP may develop into an “extra-regional threat”. The same report points out that no foreign state actually believes the Taliban when they claim they are not harbouring terrorists. Pakistan is not alone in blaming Kabul for not taking action against violent terrorists; Tajikistan has expressed similar complaints. However, while the problem is clear, the solution is not that straightforward. Pakistan and Afghanistan traded fire last year, and while that exchange may have brought down levels of infiltration, the TTP remain ensconced in Afghanistan. While Pakistan should defend itself resolutely and ensure that no armed actors are able to violate its territory, an active military campaign against Kabul may not deliver favourable results. In fact, it may further complicate matters. Therefore, the best option for Pakistan is to engage with friendly states, such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkiye, which also have relations with the Taliban, to, at the very least, get a commitment from Kabul to stop cross-border terrorism. Afghanistan also desires to be integrated into regional trade networks, and here Pakistan can work with China, Russia and the Central Asian states to convince Kabul that regional commerce will only be possible if it stops ‘exporting’ armed violence to its neighbours. As for the apparent India-Taliban nexus, Pakistan should raise the issue from global platforms so that New Delhi’s machinations are known to the world. Published in Dawn, February 20th, 2026

By none@none.com (Editorial)