F.P. Report
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s deputy prime minister and foreign minister, Ishaq Dar, has called for a “sustained dialogue” between Pakistan and Afghanistan to address a surge in militancy and other issues, the Pakistani foreign ministry said on Monday.
The call for the dialogue followed a recent three-day visit to Afghanistan by Pakistan’s special representative, Ambassador Muhammad Sadiq Khan, to discuss bilateral relations with authorities in Kabul.
Pakistan-Afghanistan relations have soured lately due to security, political and border issues, with Islamabad accusing the Taliban-led Afghan government of sheltering anti-Pakistan militants behind cross-border attacks. Kabul denies these claims.
Tensions escalated this month after a train hijacking by the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) group in Pakistan’s Balochistan province, which killed over 60 passengers, security personnel and militants. Pakistan said BLA fighters remained in contact with their handlers in Afghanistan while holding the passengers hostage for a day.
“DPM [Dar] emphasized the importance of sustained dialogue with the interim Afghan government to address Pakistan’s concerns and promote bilateral relations,” the Pakistan foreign ministry said in a statement.
During the meeting, Ambassador Sadiq gave a detailed briefing to Dar regarding his recent visit to Kabul and highlighted his key engagements with Afghan authorities regarding bilateral cooperation.
Pakistan has been battling twin insurgencies — one mounted by religiously motivated groups like the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in the country’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province and the other by ethnic Baloch separatists in Balochistan. Both provinces border Afghanistan.
Islamabad says the takeover of Kabul by the Afghan Taliban in 2021 has emboldened the TTP and other militant groups who have safe havens in Afghanistan. Afghan officials deny the allegation and insist that Pakistan’s security issues are an internal matter of Islamabad.
In Nov. 2023, Pakistan also launched a nationwide deportation campaign targeting undocumented foreigners, mainly Afghans, following deadly suicide bombings blamed on Afghan nationals. The campaign has led to the repatriation of over 800,000 Afghans, many of whom had been in Pakistan since fleeing the Soviet invasion in 1979. Islamabad this month also instructed Afghanistan Citizen Card holders to leave by March 31 or face deportation.
