ISLAMABAD: The Afghan Taliban’s interim government has expressed its reluctance to go against the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) for involvement in terror attacks within Pakistani territory, a key concern which the government of Pakistan has been taking up repeatedly with the Taliban.
Informed sources told Business Recorder that during the recent visit to Kabul by a high-level delegation led by Defence Minister Khawaja Asif to Kabul on February 22, Pakistan delivered a clear message to the Taliban ‘either cooperate with Pakistan or we will unilaterally handle’ the issue of TTP.
The delegation included Director General, Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Lt General Nadeem Anjum, the now ‘sacked’ special representative to Afghanistan Mohammad Sadiq, foreign secretary Dr Asad Majeed Khan and Pakistan’s chargé d’affaires to Afghanistan Ubaidur Rehman Nizamani, met with senior Taliban leaders, deputy Prime Minister Abdul Ghani Baradar Akhund, defence minister Mohammad Yaqoob Mujahid and interior minister Sirajuddin Haqqani to discuss Pakistan’s key concerns with regard to the presence of TTP in Afghanistan and its involvement in terrorism in Pakistan.
Defence minister, ISI chief hold talks with Afghan govt
During these meetings, the sources maintained that Pakistan’s side handed over a list that included names, pictorial evidence, phone numbers and addresses that belong to the TTP’s Shura resident in Afghanistan.
They said the Taliban authorities were also provided evidence of TTP and its affiliated outfits such as Jamaat-ul-Ahrar (JuA) involvement in Peshawar Police Lines and Karachi Police Office attacks, besides sharing concerns over the active presence of Islamic State–Khorasan Province (ISKP) in Afghanistan, particularly in the bordering areas along Mohmand and Bajaur.
The sources further said the Afghan Taliban authorities were reminded of their pledge to the international community not to allow terrorist outfits to use Afghanistan’s territory to launch terror attacks against any other country. The Afghan side expressed its unwillingness to act against the TTP and maintained that “Afghanistan being a sovereign state, will not allow any action within its territory”.
Additionally, the Taliban authorities also conveyed their ‘reservations on the US drone attacks, the question of recognition of their interim government and frozen assets of Afghanistan by the US.
The sources further maintained that Pakistan is still hopeful that the Afghan Taliban authorities will act on its demand and address the country’s security concerns that emanate from across the border.
In related development, the Afghan Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a letter to member countries, including Pakistan has stated that it will honour all pacts relating to the Central Asia-South Asia-1000 (CASA-1000) project signed by the previous Afghan government, aimed at becoming a part of efforts to revive the stalled four-nation electricity trade project.
However, financing by the international community for the project was summarily stopped subsequent to what was cited as Taliban atrocities on its own people in general and women in particular with the World Bank and USAID withdrawing their funding for the project after regime change in Afghanistan.
The Afghan Ministry of Foreign Affairs has referred to a letter of Finance Ministry of Afghanistan, which states CASA-1000 signed contract (grant No; H-927-Af), financed through the World Bank’s free aid, will end on March 31, 2023.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023