Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry said on Saturday that the only constructive solution to tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan is for Kabul to fully respect the Doha Agreement, which prohibits the use of Afghan soil for terrorist activities.
Amid the ongoing hostilities with Afghanistan, a high-level delegation, led by Defense Minister Khawaja Asif, is holding talks with a delegation from Kabul today in Qatar’s capital Doha, the Foreign Ministry said today.
speaking in Geographic news In the ‘Naya Pakistan’ programme, the state minister pointed out that Pakistan has tried to resolve the issue through diplomatic channels and military connections with Afghanistan, but so far these attempts have failed.
“For the first time, a third country is involved to convey that Afghanistan has to respect the Doha agreement, by which they will not allow the use of their territory for acts of terrorism by anyone,” he said.
“Through a third country, a conversation is taking place. The only positive way forward is for Afghanistan to prohibit the use of its land by all actors who use it to carry out terrorist acts, as set out in the Doha agreement.”
When asked if Pakistan would respond to the attacks by attacking terrorists on Afghan soil, Chaudhry replied: “Why are things not getting better? It is because they (Afghans) lack determination and commitment.” Khawarij they receive training and sponsorship there before entering Pakistan.”
Fitna al Khawarij is a term that the State uses to refer to terrorists belonging to the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), while Fitna al Hindustan is a state-designated term for terrorist organizations in Balochistan.
“Now, Afghanistan shakes hands with India and recognizes [occupied] Kashmir as Indian territory. We keep saying ‘they are powers-that-be’ and now they have proven it.”
The state minister said the “proxy forces” must remember that Pakistan will maintain its stance and do whatever is necessary to defend its people and territorial integrity.
“If terrorism is an internal problem of Pakistan, why then [terrorists] Are you coming from Afghanistan? he asked, referring to Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi’s recent statements stating that terrorism is an internal issue of a country.
“We have identified their camps and hideouts and how they enter Pakistan. We have sent them multiple files with this information, but nothing has been done,” he stressed.
Since last weekend, Islamabad and Kabul have been involved in a series of border clashes.
Last Sunday, 23 Pakistani soldiers were martyred and 200 Taliban and affiliated terrorists were killed in border clashes following an attack from the Afghan side, the Inter-Services Public Relations said in a statement.
Afghanistan claims it carried out the border attack as a “retaliation” measure, accusing Islamabad of carrying out airstrikes on its territory last Thursday, an allegation Islamabad has neither confirmed nor denied.
Clashes broke out again earlier this week on Tuesday, with the Afghan Taliban and Fitna al Khawarij exchanging fire with Pakistani troops at the Kurram border. Pakistan followed this on Wednesday by launching “precision strikes” in Afghanistan’s Kandahar province and Kabul.
The FO announced on Wednesday that a temporary ceasefire had been agreed with Afghanistan for the next 48 hours amid recent border hostilities, set to expire at 6:00 pm PKT on Friday. The ceasefire was extended later on Friday, according to a senior diplomatic source.
Furthermore, Pakistan again attacked terrorist hideouts in Afghanistan on the same day. Incidents were reported in Angoor Adda region and Afghan Urgun and Barmal districts of Paktika province while attacks were carried out on hideouts of the banned group Hafiz Gul Bahadur.
The attacks came on the heels of a daring gun and bomb attack on a military facility in North Waziristan, and just hours after Islamabad and Kabul extended a two-day ceasefire.
