ISLAMABAD (The Thursday Times) — Pakistan on Saturday accused the Afghan Taliban of “shifting blame” and of a “persistent refusal to address terrorism” from Afghan soil, warning Kabul that Islamabad reserves the right to take all necessary measures against threats to its security “wherever they originate”.
The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting was responding to Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, who had claimed that Pakistan “does not want to resolve the conflict with Afghanistan through talks”, blamed Islamabad’s “wrong policies” and insisted Kabul was not the cause of the terrorism problem.
The remarks, the ministry said, exposed the Taliban regime’s “deeply misguided approach and unwillingness to confront the root cause of deteriorating relations with Pakistan”. “The Taliban leadership continues to blame Islamabad’s policies while conveniently ignoring the single most important issue poisoning bilateral relations: its persistent failure to address terrorism emanating from Afghan soil,” it said.
“The Afghan Taliban regime must understand that Pakistan will not tolerate terrorist sanctuaries across its borders that impact its security nor allow its people to remain targets of terrorism emanating from Afghanistan,” the statement said, calling terrorism a red line and the security of Pakistan’s citizens non-negotiable. “Shifting blame, making hollow assurances and questioning Pakistan’s policies will neither resolve the crisis nor absolve Kabul of its responsibilities.”
“Pakistan’s security will not be held hostage to Afghan Taliban’s inaction, evasions or misplaced priorities,” the ministry said. “Pakistan’s resolve to protect its people must never be mistaken for weakness.”
The statement came on the same day US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington did not want Pakistan to be targeted for terrorism and that Pakistan felt the Taliban had not done enough to stop attacks launched from Afghanistan. Pakistan told the UN Human Rights Council this week that the Taliban let terrorists operate from Afghan soil, and the Pakistan Army has destroyed Afghan Taliban posts in retaliation for cross-border firing.
