Khaberni - The Pakistani defense minister said today, Saturday, that he believes Afghanistan wants peace, but warned that failing to reach an agreement during the talks in Istanbul would mean "open war".
It is scheduled that Afghanistan and Pakistan resume their talks on Saturday, but this time in Turkey.
The goal is to address security issues and establish a permanent ceasefire on their shared border, which has recently seen rare intense clashes.
The clashes that erupted two weeks ago resulted in dozens of deaths, including civilians, after the Taliban government accused Pakistan of being behind bombings in central Kabul, launching a retaliatory attack on the border.
Islamabad responded with a promise of a "strong response" and, according to security sources, carried out "precise strikes" targeting armed groups inside Afghan territory, at the heart of the dispute between the two countries.
The two parties reached a truce last weekend mediated by Qatar, but the details are still unclear and are scheduled to be discussed in a new round of talks in Turkey.
Curbing Militants
A few days ago, the Pakistani Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif demanded that the Afghan Taliban restrain the militants who attack Pakistan across the shared border of the two countries.
The two countries agreed during meetings in Doha to cease fire after clashes that lasted for days on the border and resulted in dozens of deaths, in the worst violence of its kind since the Taliban took power in Kabul in 2021.
The fighting, which saw Pakistani airstrikes on the disputed border extending 2600 kilometers, erupted after Islamabad demanded Kabul to control the militants saying they were operating from Afghanistan.
Asif, who led the talks opposite his Afghan counterpart, Mullah Mohammad Yaqoob, said: "Anything that comes from Afghanistan would be (a violation of) this agreement... Everything depends on this single clause".
No Incursions
According to Asif, the written agreement signed by Pakistan, Afghanistan, Turkey, and Qatar clearly states that there will be no incursions. He explained, saying: "We have a ceasefire agreement as long as there is no violation of the current agreement".
Kabul denies providing sanctuary for terrorists to attack Pakistan and accuses the Pakistani army of spreading misleading information about Afghanistan and harboring extremists linked to ISIS to undermine its stability and sovereignty, which Islamabad denies as well.
Last week, Zabiullah Mujahid, spokesman for the Taliban, said that it was decided in the Doha talks "that neither of the countries will engage in hostile actions against the other, or support groups acting against the Pakistani government".
In a subsequent post on the platform "X", he stated that this reflects the Taliban's long-standing stance that Afghan territory will not be used against any other country.
