Truce hinges on Taliban's leash: Asif

Defence minister says Kabul must stop incursions Pakistani Taliban acting with Afghan hosts Trade, transit to re

A ceasefire agreement between Islamabad and Kabul rests on the ruling Afghan Taliban's ability to rein in terrorists attacking Pakistan across their shared border, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif told Reuters on Monday.

"Anything coming from Afghanistan will be (a) violation of this agreement," said Asif, who led the talks with the Kabul regime's acting defence minister, Mullah Yaqoob Mujahid. "Everything hinges on this one clause."

In the written agreement signed by Pakistan, Afghanistan, Turkiye and Qatar, it was clearly spelled out that there would not be any incursions, the minister said.

"We have a ceasefire agreement as long as there is no violation of the agreement which is already in force."

The minister said that Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) operates out of Afghanistan to attack Pakistan "in connivance" with the ruling Taliban, the minister said.

"We were being attacked. Our territory was being attacked. So we just did tit for tat. We were paying them in the same coin," Asif said. "They are in Kabul. They are everywhere. Wherever they are we will attack them. Kabul is not, you know, a no-go area."

The next round of talks would be held in Istanbul on October 25 to evolve a mechanism on how to enforce the agreement, Asif said.

In a separate interview with Al Jazeera Arabic, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said that the primary objective of the ceasefire agreement between Pakistan and Afghanistan was to "eliminate the menace of terrorism".

Asif said terrorism had long plagued the Pak-Afghan border regions, and both sides had reached the conclusion that immediate eradication of terrorist elements was essential.

He added that the two countries would make serious and coordinated efforts to curb terrorism, warning that regional peace could face grave threats if the issue was not addressed.

He revealed that the agreement was reached through the mediation of Qatar and Turkiye, whose participation served as a guarantee for the accord. The minister appreciated the role of Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in facilitating the talks.

Asif further stated that another meeting is scheduled next week in Istanbul to finalise the details of the agreement, during which an effective mechanism will be developed to resolve existing issues between the two countries.

He added that his Afghan counterpart also acknowledged terrorism as the primary cause of tensions in bilateral ties, a matter that both sides were now determined to resolve.

The defence minister noted that Pakistan had suffered immense human and financial losses over the years due to terrorism. However, he expressed optimism that peace would now return and relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan would normalise.

He said as a result of the ceasefire, trade and transit activities between the two countries would resume, allowing Afghanistan to use Pakistan's ports once again.

The minister also clarified that Afghan refugees with valid visas and documents would be allowed to stay in Pakistan, while the repatriation of undocumented refugees would continue.

However, Asif cautioned that it was too early to claim satisfaction over the resolution of all issues. "We will have to see in the coming weeks and months how effectively the agreement is implemented," he said.

In a separate interview with Arab News, Asif categorically denied speculation that Pakistan's recent airstrikes in Kabul were conducted at the urging of the United States. "It is total nonsense and nothing else," he said.

He questioned why Pakistan would act on behalf of others, noting that the country had already endured decades of involvement in Afghan affairs.

"We want to stay away and live like decent neighbours. We don't want to have any involvement in Afghan affairs," Asif said, adding that Pakistan had "no business" in the Kabul regime's relationship with India or any other country.

"Absolutely not. Whatever they want to do in their own territory and doesn't spill over to our territory, doesn't become our business," he asserted.

(With input from agencies)