The Afghan slip

Pakistan and Afghanistan are surely in a serious diatribe. The National Security Committee (NSC) broadened the scope of touch-basing Kabul and its ruling dispensation by directly calling upon them to address the terror fissures, and ensure that the Afghan soil is not used for extra-territorial adventures. The resolution from the nation’s high-powered civilian-cum-security body came as it deliberated over the rising incidents of violence inside the country as well as the unrest on its western frontiers.

This apparently necessitated because the Taliban leadership had taken exception to Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah’s utterances that some of the fugitives from Pakistan, especially those belonging to the outlawed Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), are holed up inside Afghanistan, and are fomenting terror in Pakistan. He went on to say that Islamabad reserves the right to push back and retaliate in force, if need be. The NSC stood its ground and reiterated a zero-tolerance policy towards the nuisance of terrorism and non-state actors, and it was a clear-cut indication that all is not well while dealing with the Southwest Asian state, which was once considered as Pakistan’s strategic depth and a friendly frontier.

The security conundrum with Afghanistan is getting serious. It is a déjà vu for many as militants seem to be on a free-for-all and crossing over the porous borders. Coupled with this is the rise in terror attacks on Pakistani interests inside Afghanistan as well as in Pakistan. The recent back-to-back bombing incidents in Quetta and Islamabad are cases in point. Also, according to a report by a local think-tank, more than two dozen terrorist incidents were witnessed in the country in December 2022 while the figure for the whole of the outgoing year was recorded at 376, with Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan remained the most troubled places.

This is why the NSC after being in session for two days stipulated that “Pakistan’s security is uncompromisable and the full writ of the state will be maintained on every inch of the territory.” This is supposed to be a strong-worded statement as it was directed at Kabul, and indicated as to how things have gone wrong since the militia swung back into power on August 15, 2021, and the security vacuum that has come into being after the hurried exit of American troops from the war-torn country.

It’s time for some brain-storming and to cement out an equation that holistically addresses the misgivings that come into play between the two countries. Stability in Afghanistan is sine qua non for Pakistan’s economic vitality and the success of CPEC. The sooner the ruling Afghan Taliban and Islamabad are able to put together a political resolve, and a way out to stem non-state actors, the better. There is no point in waiting for a new disaster in the making.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 4^th, 2023.

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