16
Pakistan-Afghanistan talks: Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said that Pakistan does not want to increase tension with the neighboring country.
Pakistan-Afghanistan talks: Pakistan said on Friday that the next round of talks with Afghanistan will be held on November 6. Pakistan expressed hope for positive results from the talks. Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said that Pakistan does not want to increase tension with the neighboring country. He said Pakistan will continue to be engaged in the mediation process and hopes for a positive outcome of the November 6 talks. The next round of talks was scheduled after Pakistan and Afghanistan agreed to continue the ceasefire that was agreed upon earlier this month. The first round of talks was held in Doha on 18 and 19 October. This was followed by a second round in Istanbul on 25 October, which lasted for several days but ended without any breakthrough on the key issue of cross-border terrorism. But efforts continued behind the scenes to save the process, with Turkiye playing a role in breaking the impasse and paving the way for the November 6 talks.
Afghan soil should not be used for terrorism
Earlier it was said that the Istanbul round ended on Tuesday, but Andrabi said that the talks between Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban in the presence of mediators concluded in Istanbul on Thursday evening. Pakistan engaged positively with the Taliban regime without compromising its clear stand. Andrabi said that Afghan soil should not be used for terrorism against Pakistan. He said Pakistan is against any escalation of hostilities, but expects the Afghan Taliban regime to honor its commitment to the international community and take concrete action against terrorist organizations, including Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). He also warned that if provocations continue in future, Pakistan will give a strong response.
Taliban should stop supporting TTP
Defense Minister Khawaja Asif rejected the Afghan Taliban’s claim that the TTP terrorists are Pakistani refugees returning after living in Afghanistan. He questioned how these refugees are returning armed with highly destructive weapons. Instead of traveling openly on main roads by buses, trucks or cars, they are entering Pakistan like thieves through inaccessible mountain roads. He further said that this logic exposes the deceitfulness and bad intentions of Afghanistan. Asif told Geo TV that relations with Afghanistan can never be normal until Kabul stops its support to TTP. He further said that it is difficult to trust the Afghan side without concrete guarantees against cross-border attacks. Pak Defense Minister said that he will not blame the entire Afghan government, but many people within it are supporting these groups.
Also read: Asian stock market and oil prices fell due to the meeting of Trump and Jinping.
