US echoes Pak concerns over Afghan safe havens

The US on Tuesday said it saw no evidence of Afghan refugees being involved in acts of extremism in Pakistan and that Washington held the Taliban regime in Kabul responsible for ensuring that Afghan soil was not being used as a "safe haven”.

In the separate briefings, the spokespersons for White House and the State Department reiterated that Washington would continue to work with Islamabad on the issue of terrorist threats.

The US statements came after a corps commanders conference on Monday rejected the Afghan Taliban’s claims that the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) was not operating from their soil.

According to press release issued by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the top military noted that the TTP terrorist outfit not only had sanctuaries across the border but also access to latest weapons.

As tensions flared up between Pakistan and Afghanistan, particularly after militant attacks in Balochistan last week, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif accused the Afghan Taliban of not fulfilling their commitments.

Speaking in the Express News programme, ‘Centre State’ over the weekend, Asif also said that the current situation had raised significant concerns about the facilities provided to the Afghan refugees in Pakistan.

However, White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters that there was no indication that Afghan refugees had engaged in acts of extremism.

“We’ve seen no indication that Afghan refugees in Pakistan or along that border are guilty of acts of terrorism,” Kirby said. “We’re grateful to Pakistan for the incredible generosity … to so many Afghans,” he added.

Kirby said that the Afghan refugees were “just looking for a safe and secure place” and “we’ll continue to work with Pakistan as we have on their legitimate terrorism threats.”

State Department Spokesperson Mathew Miller said that the US held the Taliban regime in Kabul responsible for ensuring that Afghan soil was not being used as a "safe haven” for launching terrorist attacks.

At his regular media briefing, Miller was asked about the US government's stance on Pakistan's warnings to the Afghan Taliban for harbouring terrorists. "I don’t have any comment specifically on that,” Miller replied.

“But I will say we have made very clear that we believe the Taliban has the responsibility to prevent Afghanistan from being used as a safe haven for launching terrorist attacks," he added.