ISLAMABAD: In an apparent warning to the Taliban interim government of Afghanistan for providing shelter to the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), the National Security Committee (NSC), on Monday, declared that “no country will be allowed to provide sanctuaries and facilitation to terrorists and Pakistan reserves all rights in that respect to safeguard her people”.
The NSC which met for its second session, chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and attended by relevant federal cabinet members, Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, all Services Chiefs, and heads of intelligence services, was also apprised of the security situation of the country with a particular focus on recent terrorist incidents in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, according to a statement of the PM House issued after the meeting.
“The forum concluded that no country will be allowed to provide sanctuaries and facilitation to terrorists and Pakistan reserves all rights in that respect to safeguard her people,” said the statement in an apparent warning to the Afghan interim government without naming it.
It further stated that the NSC reiterated its resolve to have zero tolerance for terrorism in Pakistan and reaffirmed its determination to take on any and all entities that resort to violence. “This will be dealt with full force of the state. Pakistan’s security is uncompromisable and the full writ of the state will be maintained on every inch of Pakistan’s territory,” the NSC further resolved.
The statement comes following the Afghan interim government reacted strongly to Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah’s earlier remarks in which he had stated that Pakistan may target the TTP militants in Afghanistan “if authorities in Kabul did not take any action against them”.
“The Ministry of National Defence, considers as provocative and baseless, (the) recent speeches of the Pakistani interior minister about the presence of TTP in Afghanistan and their possible attack inside Afghanistan. It damages the good relations between the two neighbouring and brotherly countries with such claims by Pakistani officials despite the existence of evidence indicating that the TTP centres are inside Pakistan. We request that any concerns and problems should be resolved through understanding,” the Afghan Defence Ministry said in a statement on Sunday.
Pakistan will not let anyone sabotage hard-earned peace: NSC
“Afghanistan is not without its masters, as always, we are ready to defend the territorial integrity and independence of our homeland, and it is mentionable we have a better experience than anyone in defending and protecting our country,” the Afghan Defence Ministry further stated in response to Interior Minister Sanaullah’s statement.
In his address to the NSC meeting on Monday, the PM office statement added that the prime minister emphasized that the war against terrorism will be led by federal and provincial governments as per National Action Plan in accordance with National Internal Security Policy with people-centric socio-economic development as a priority while Armed Forces will provide resolute deterrence and secure conducive and enabling environment.
It added that Provincial Apex Committees are being revived in full earnest and law enforcement agencies (LEAs) especially counterterrorism departments (CTDs) will be brought up to the required fighting standards with requisite capabilities.
Pakistan has been facing fresh wave of terrorism following the TTP ended a so-called peace agreement in November 2022 and instructed its militants to resume countrywide attacks.
It was followed by Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar’s day-long trip to Kabul on November 29, 2022, where she held meetings with senior authorities of the Afghan interim government and conveyed Pakistan’s concerns with regard to the use of Afghanistan’s soil by the TTP for its militant activities against Pakistan.
Responding to a question about the repeated cross-border attacks from Afghanistan side and the presence of militant outfits including the TTP across the border, Foreign Office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch told her weekly media briefing last week: “Afghanistan has given us certain assurances, and we hope that those assurances would be fulfilled.”
She said that Pakistan and Afghanistan share a 2,600-kilometre long border with a difficult terrain and we have seen in the past as well that instability in Afghanistan has affected Pakistan.
“Pakistan; therefore, has a natural stake in ensuring peace and stability in Afghanistan. We would like to continue to engage and find solutions in all these aspects including the issues that I have just highlighted,” she added. Asked about the possibility of any review in Pakistan’s policy towards Afghanistan, she said: “no policy in the world remains static permanently; all policies remain under review from time to time.” “We strongly believe that it is important to continue engagement with Afghan side to find solutions in order to ensure peace in Pakistan and along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border,” she added.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023