Pak-Afghan ties, clashes and talks

The bilateral relations between Pakistan and the Taliban-ruled Afghanistan have been largely soured since the hardline faction took control of the neighbouring country. There were wide-ranging expectations that the group would forge friendly ties with the nation that hosted the then globally designated terror group in contrast to the international community and proactively lobbied worldwide on its behalf besides paying a heavy cost for its unhindered support and unceasing hospitality over the past decades. Previously, Afghan Republicans supported Pashtun nationalists to undermine Pakistan’s security interests while the current regime openly facilitates and supports anti-Pakistan terror outfits who are blatantly waging a war against the Pakistani state, institutions and common populace. There had been recurrent cross-border attacks on Pakistani border checkposts along with armed ambushes, terrorist attacks and suicide bombings on Pakistani Security Forces by the TTP terrorists presently camped inside Afghanistan. The shutdown of border crossings, recurrent halt of transport convoys, and Exchange of statements between top government officials is customary, and the situation is worsening every other day without any signs of remorse, remedial or improvement from either side in sight so far.

Recently, a large number of TTP terrorists attacked a Pakistani checkpost while an intense armed clash between two militaries occurred at the Torkham border checkpoint, which led to a week-long closure of border crossing and a military stand-off between troops on either side of the border. High-level contacts failed to resolve the issue and tension still prevails and seriously affects the bilateral trade and economies of the two nations. Recently, the Pakistan Foreign Office has pressed Afghan interim authorities to make the Durand line a border of peace and a symbol of friendship and cooperation and for that end, the neighbouring state must ensure that its territory is not used as a terror haven and launching pad for terrorist attacks against Pakistan. The Spokesperson urged Afghan rulers to be mindful of Pakistan’s concerns and respect its territorial integrity. Realistically, hosting terrorists, fueling hostility, and dispatching bomb-laden individuals are neither ethics for good neighbourliness nor could be a reward for decades-long hospitality and brotherhood. Pakistanis and Afghans are all-time brothers and friends, and their pleasures and griefs are shared, Hence The Afghan interim rulers must not trash those centuries-long bonds for the sake of their purblind objectives that will never be accomplished any time in future.