Dichotomy: Rift with Kabul linked to ‘dual policy’, says Babar

He said Molvi Fazlullah must be neutralised, but so must the successors of Mullah Mansoor in Pakistan

ISLAMABAD:  

Dichotomy in state policy towards militants has brought Afghanistan and Pakistan close to a dangerous collision, said PPP Senator Farhatullah Babar.

Speaking at a seminar on Pak-Afghan relations on Wednesday, he said that Pakistan refuses to acknowledge that the Taliban ideology on both sides of the Durand Line is to destroy modern state structures.

“We pretend that while Afghan Taliban are trying to drive out foreign forces the Pakistani Taliban are seeking to destroy the state itself,” he said. It is this dichotomy in state policy that has led the two closest neighbours on the path of dangerous collision.

“Of course, Molvi Fazlullah must be neutralised, but so must the successors of Mullah Mansoor in Pakistan,” he said.

The successors of Mullah Mansoor are more likely to be found in well-secured compounds in Quetta than in the refugee camps.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 23^rd, 2016.