Assalamu Alaikum - Pakistan and Afghanistan Restart Peace Talks in Türkiye as Islamabad Seeks to End Cross‑Border Attacks
Assalamu Alaikum, brothers and sisters.
Pakistan’s negotiating team is in Istanbul to begin a new round of talks with Afghanistan, government officials said, as Islamabad presses for an end to militant attacks coming from across the border.
Last month the two neighbours saw deadly clashes along the frontier that left dozens dead on both sides before a fragile ceasefire was agreed during talks helped by Qatar and Türkiye. Pakistan has repeatedly said militants are being sheltered on Afghan soil and urged Kabul’s authorities not to allow their land to be used for attacks. Afghanistan has often denied those claims, saying Pakistan’s security problems are an internal matter.
More recently the Taliban’s spokesperson suggested Pakistan rejected Kabul’s offer to remove people Islamabad considers a threat, a claim Pakistan’s officials have dismissed.
“The delegation left today and negotiations will start tomorrow,” Pakistan’s defense minister told reporters outside parliament. “Let’s hope the Afghans also act with some prudence and peace can be restored in this region.”
At the end of the last talks, the sides agreed to extend the ceasefire and set up a monitoring and verification mechanism with help from the mediators. The new round was scheduled to begin in Istanbul on Nov. 6.
Asked whether progress was likely, the minister said simply: dialogue is for when there’s a chance of movement; otherwise it’s a waste of time. He reiterated Pakistan’s single demand - the militant attacks originating from Afghan territory must stop.
Pakistan has rejected Afghanistan’s version that Islamabad refused a proposal to hand over militants. Pakistan’s information ministry said terrorists in Afghanistan who threaten Pakistan should be controlled or arrested, and if they are Pakistani nationals they should be handed over through agreed border posts, consistent with Pakistan’s longstanding position. The ministry called the Afghan account “false and misleading.”
There is clear distrust between the two sides, with mutual accusations of bad faith, but both prefer to keep talking under the encouragement of the mediators after previous rounds hit deadlock. May Allah grant wisdom to the leaders and a just, lasting peace for the people affected by the violence.
https://www.arabnews.com/node/