Pak, Iran to hold talks on Afghan situation today

Pakistan and Iran will hold talks on Monday (today) on the current situation in Afghanistan particularly the terrorist sanctuaries that the interim Taliban government have not been able to dismantle.

Iran's Special Envoy for Afghanistan Hassan Kazemi Ghomi on Sunday arrived here for meetings with the Pakistani authorities.

He will hold formal talks with Pakistan’s Special Representative on Afghanistan Asif Durrani.

The visit comes at a time when Pakistan and Afghanistan relations are tense over Kabul's failure to stop the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) from cross-border terrorist attacks.

Iran too is worried over the presence of different terrorist groups on the Afghan soil.

The two countries in the past were backing opposing players in the Afghan conflict. But in recent years, Iran and Pakistan have convergence on the Afghan issues.

On one issue where both countries are on the same page is the Afghan refugees, Pakistan and Iran have shared the burden of millions of Afghan refugees for decades. But both countries want the early repatriation of these refugees.

Islamabad in November last year launched a crackdown against the undocumented Afghans, something that drew a strong reaction from Kabul.

Pakistan's drive against illegal Afghans attracted a lot attention. Interestingly, Iran sent more Afghans back to their country in recent months but the story didn't get the much traction.

During the recent visit by Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, the Afghan Taliban government termed Pakistani decision of deportation of Afghan nationals “cruel”.

But Islamabad is adamant that it can't allow Afghans living without any legal documents to stay in the country.

Read: Afghan refugees and pakistan separating fact from fiction

The root cause of their tension stems from the resurgence of terrorist attacks in Pakistan. Islamabad has blamed the terrorist hideouts across the border for the surge in these attacks.

The Taliban government, however, insists that the TTP is Pakistan’s internal problem and that there are no terrorist sanctuaries on the Afghan soil.

However, Kabul's claim was contradicted by the fact that the JUI-F chief reportedly held meetings with TTP chief Noor Wali Mehsud and Hafiz Gul Bahadur on the Afghan soil. Pakistan had been seeking the extradition of both these terrorists.

In order to break the deadlock, Maulana Fazl held a rare meeting with Taliban chief Haibatullah Akhundzada in Kandahar last week. This was the first known meeting between any Pakistani leader and the reclusive Taliban chief.

The JUI-F confirming the meeting said he held "comprehensive and inclusive" talks with the Afghan Taliban. He was upbeat about the positive outcome of his trip to Afghanistan.

Fazl, according to Pakistan, travelled to Afghanistan in a private capacity and was not representing the government. But he was given a briefing at the Foreign Office before his departure to the neighbouring country suggesting that the government was in the picture.

Officials are skeptical about any forward movement as the Taliban are still insisting on revving talks with the TTP.

Pakistan, however, made it clear that it has no interest in dialogue with the terrorist outfit.
The Foreign Office spokesperson said Pakistan's demand remained unchanged, saying the Taliban government would have to fulfil its promise of not allowing the Afghan soil to be used against Pakistan.