Pakistan rejects dialogue with terrorist groups amid rising attacks

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The Foreign Office on Friday asserted that Pakistan will not engage with any terrorist group targeting its armed forces and civilians, and called on Kabul to take decisive action against terrorist groups such as the Tehreek-e-Talaban Pakistan.

“Incidents of terrorism have increased [in Pakistan] During the Afghan [Taliban] Government,” FO spokesperson Tahir Hussain Andrabi said during the weekly media briefing.

Andrabi urged the Taliban government to prevent its territory from being used for terrorism inside Pakistan.

However, he said “a lobby within the Afghan Taliban is taking money from outside” and using it against Pakistan.

The FO spokesman thanked Turkey and Qatar for their efforts to ease tensions between the two countries.

“There was a recent round of talks between Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban in Istanbul,” he said, adding that Pakistan had approached the Afghan Taliban government with a positive intention.

However, he lamented Kabul’s response to Pakistan’s move, saying the Taliban government was “presenting terrorist safe havens in Afghanistan as a humanitarian issue”.

Peace talks between the two bordering countries ended without an agreement on what the Taliban delegation called “irrational” arguments to Islamabad. However, the ceasefire between the two neighboring countries continues.

The talks, mediated first by Qatar and then by Turkey, began last month after a week-long border clash, which was instigated by Taliban forces.

Pakistan retaliated by killing more than 200 Taliban fighters and their affiliated militants after Pakistani forces launched unprovoked attacks on several border lines.

Security forces also carried out “sanitary strikes” inside Afghanistan, including Kabul, and destroyed several terrorist hideouts.

Meanwhile, the FO spokesperson rejected the Afghan Taliban’s attempt to portray cross-border terrorism as a humanitarian issue, saying the presence of terrorists and their safe havens in Afghanistan is “certainly not a humanitarian issue”.

Despite the Afghan Taliban’s lack of commitment to regional peace, Andrabi said Islamabad welcomed any attempt to mediate tensions between the two countries.

“We welcome Iran’s efforts in mediation. We believe they can play an important role in mediation,” he added.

Andrabi emphasized Pakistan’s unified approach to ending terrorism, saying any claims of differences within Pakistan over its Afghan policy were propagated by elements of the Taliban regime.

The FO spokesman attacked Kabul for trying to curb Pashtun ethnic sentiments in Pakistan. “A larger Pashtun population lives in Pakistan than in Afghanistan.”

He said that Pakistan was determined to end the menace of terrorism, adding that the nation stood by the armed forces in its fight against terrorists.

King Abdullah of Jordan arrived yesterday

During the briefing, the FO spokesperson announced that King Abdullah II Ibn Al Hussein of Jordan was due to arrive in the country tomorrow (Saturday) for a two-day official visit.

He said that King Abdullah is arriving in Pakistan for a visit from November 15 to 16 at the invitation of Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif.

“During his visit, His Majesty King Abdullah II Ibn Al Hussain will hold important meetings with the President and Prime Minister of Pakistan,” read a statement issued by the FO.

It added that a special investiture ceremony would be held at the Iwan Sadr (President’s House) to bestow the highest civilian award on King Abdullah II.

The FO has said that this visit will play an essential role in deepening the bilateral cooperation between the two countries.

The Jordanian leader is visiting the country after the visit of the country’s Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir last month.

During his visit, Field Marshal Munir met with King Abdullah II and the country’s military leaders, where they discussed defense and security cooperation.

‘India’s Boycott Can’t Stop Court Proceedings on IWT’

The FO spokesperson said that Pakistan has taken note of the decision issued by the arbitral tribunal in the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) arbitration process, adding that India’s boycott cannot stop the process.

“Further court hearings will be held in Vienna from November 17 to 21,” Andrabi confirmed.

The spokesman also attacked India for spreading “negative and false propaganda” about Islamabad’s nuclear programme.

“Pakistan last conducted a nuclear test on May 28, 1999,” he said, adding that India’s record on nuclear safety and security had not been good.

“Last year, material stolen from the Bhabha Atomic Research Center was being sold in the black market,” the spokesperson added.