Pakistan, Afghan Taliban regime agree on continuation of ceasefire

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In a major development, Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban government have agreed to maintain a ceasefire after a new round of talks in Istanbul, Turkey’s foreign ministry confirmed late Thursday.

“Further ways of implementation will be discussed and decided,” read a joint statement on the talks between Afghanistan and Pakistan mediated by Turkey and Qatar.

It added that the meetings were held in Istanbul from October 25-30 with the aim of consolidating the ceasefire agreed by Afghanistan and Pakistan in Doha on October 18-19.

“All parties have agreed to establish a monitoring and verification mechanism that will ensure the maintenance of peace and the imposition of penalties on the offending party,” it added.

The mediators – Turkey and Qatar – express their appreciation for the active participation of both sides and are ready to continue cooperating with both sides for lasting peace and stability, read the statement.

Reacting to the development, Information Minister for Information[We] It is hoped that acts of terrorism will not happen again. He said that the Taliban government must ensure that its territory is not used against Pakistan.

The minister said that penalties would be determined for any violation of the ceasefire. Tarar added that the ceasefire agreement includes Taliban operations against “fitna al-khajr”.

“Now Pakistan will have a new forum to present evidence of cross-border terrorism,” he said, adding that a decision on reopening the Pakistan-Afghanistan border would be taken later.

Minister of State for Interior Talal Chaudhry said the Taliban government should not become a proxy for India, warning that such an alignment could undermine Kabul’s sovereignty.

He further said that Pakistan is committed to its principled stand and hoped that the talks would progress positively.

The minister declared the latest extension of the ceasefire a victory for Pakistan’s principled stand.

“Pakistan’s people and peace are our red lines,” the minister added. He said that India cannot guarantee the security of Afghanistan.

Islamabad said that Pakistan and Afghanistan resumed peace talks in Islamabad followed by Istanbul.

Talks broke down when the Taliban refused to provide assurances that groups like the TTP would not use Afghan territory to launch attacks on Pakistan.

The information minister confirmed that despite Pakistan presenting evidence-backed counter-terrorism demands, the talks ended without progress.

Pakistan had restarted talks at the request of mediators Turkey and Qatar to give peace another chance, while repeatedly urging Kabul to use its territory as a safe haven against militants.

Sources close to the Afghan Taliban delegation said that most of the issues had been resolved peacefully, but some Pakistani demands needed more time because they were difficult to agree on.

Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif said that there has not been any progress in these talks and this progress will depend on Kabul changing its position under the guidance of Qatar and Turkey.

He warned that any attempt to destabilize Pakistan would be met decisively and said that Pakistan welcomed a positive role from Kabul, but would act if the Taliban became an obstacle or acted as a proxy for India.

Islamabad-Kabul tension

Since the Afghan Taliban government assumed power in 2021, Pakistan has been witnessing an increase in incidents of terrorism, particularly in KP and Balochistan.

The government has repeatedly urged the Taliban government to rein in the terrorist groups responsible for countless attacks in Pakistan.

However, the Taliban regime remained largely indifferent to Pakistan’s demands and provided sanctuary to several terrorist groups targeting security forces and civilians.

Instead of addressing Pakistan’s concerns about cross-border terrorism, the Taliban government resorted to unprovoked firing along the border on 12 October.

The Pakistan Armed Forces quickly retaliated, killing more than 200 Taliban fighters and associated militants. However, as many as 23 Pakistani soldiers were martyred during the border clashes.

Security forces also carried out strikes inside Afghanistan, including in Kabul, which destroyed terrorist hideouts in the country.

Pakistan ended hostilities between the two countries’ forces on October 17 after accepting the Taliban government’s request for a temporary ceasefire.

Delegations from the two countries later met in Doha for talks mediated by Qatar, where they agreed to a ceasefire agreement.

Turkey then hosted the second round of talks in Istanbul, which began on October 25.

However, the talks ended inconclusively after four days over what Pakistani officials described as “illogical” arguments by the Taliban delegation, which they said were “disconnected from the realities on the ground”.