Islamabad to
convey tough
message to
Taliban govt
TTP acquiring money, training in terrorism and weapons from India and enjoys safe havens in Afghanistan
Saifullah Ansar/DNA
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Representative for Afghanistan, Ambassador Muhammad Sadiq Khan, will visit Kabul early next week with a stern warning from Pakistan for Afghanistan regarding the facilitation of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), The News reported on Sunday.
Sadiq, as per the diplomatic sources, will raise the issue of Kabul’s assistance to the TTP and the provision of safe havens for them on Afghan soil.
The envoy has been visiting Kabul frequently in recent months as part of shuttle diplomacy to impress upon the Taliban administration not to assist the TTP since this outlawed group is causing bloodshed in Pakistan.
It is acquiring huge money, training of terrorism and weapons from India. Pakistan has been providing strong evidence to Taliban interim government on this count.
The visit comes against the backdrop of the martyrdom of 19 soldiers in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa during separate operations from September 10 to 13, wherein at least 45 terrorists belonging to the Indian proxy Fitna al-Khawarij were killed, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) had said in a statement on Saturday.
The martyrdoms prompted a strong response from Islamabad, with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif demanding that Kabul choose between siding with terrorists or standing with Pakistan and warned there would be zero tolerance for ambiguity on the issue.
PM Shehbaz, during his Bannu visit on Saturday, made it clear that anyone speaking in favour of foreign elements or acting as their facilitator would be treated as their “instrument and would be answered in the same language they understood”.
Afghan nationals are involved in terrorist incidents in Pakistan, he said, adding that illegal Afghan residents would soon be expelled.
The premier’s remarks came as the two nations share a porous border spanning around 2,500 kilometres with several crossing points, which hold significance as a key element of regional trade and relations between the people across both sides of the fence.
However, the issue of terrorism remains a key issue for Pakistan, which has urged Afghanistan to prevent its soil from being used by groups such as the TTP to carry out attacks inside the former’s territory.
Islamabad’s reservations have also been confirmed by a report submitted to the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) by the Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team, which has revealed a nexus between Kabul and the TTP, with the former providing logistical, operational, and financial support to the latter.
Meanwhile, sources say that the Taliban government has been assuring Pakistan that TTP would not be allowed to carry out such nefarious activities while using the Afghan soil but at the end of the day, it had been backtracking from its promises.
The sources reminded that Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar had visited Kabul thrice in recent months.
The sources said that Muhammad Sadiq Khan, who played an important role in the Doha talks on Afghanistan in recent years, has dashed to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on a mission, not specified. He is likely to return to Islamabad (Monday).
