Right to strike against terrorists in Afghanistan: Taliban’s interim govt strongly reacts to Bilawal’s statement

ISLAMABAD: The Afghan Taliban’s interim government, on Thursday, refuted the recent statement by Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari that Pakistan reserved the right to strike against terrorists inside Afghanistan in self-defence and asked Islamabad to share its concerns with Kabul instead of making “unnecessary claims” in the media.

Afghan interim government official spokesperson, Zabihullah Mujahid, responded to Foreign Minister Bilawal’s earlier statement, saying such “claims” with regard to the presence of terrorist outfits such as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) “are not in the interest of both countries and people.”

“We refuse Pakistani officials’ allegations about the security situation in Afghanistan, and we call them baseless. The Islamic Emirate does not allow anyone to use the territory of Afghanistan against another country,” Mujahid said in a statement on Twitter.

“If there is any concern, it should be shared with the officials of the Islamic Emirate face to face, rather than making unnecessary claims in the media and confusing people’s minds. Obviously, such claims are not in the interest of both countries and people,” the Taliban interim government official spokesperson further stated.

Islamabad has been pressing Kabul to go after the terrorist outfits responsible for carrying terrorist attacks inside Pakistan including the banned TTP which has taken refuge in Afghanistan.

However, the Afghan authorities are encouraging Pakistan to hold dialogue with the TTP – the offer which has been rejected by the current government and security establishment after the failure of the previous many rounds of dialogue held with the TTP by former Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government.

In a media interaction on August 1, 2023, Foreign Minister Bilawal again rejected holding any talks with the militants based in Afghanistan. “Pakistan’s policy is very clear. We neither want appeasement with the terrorists nor we have tolerance [for terrorism]. We want to restore peace and establish the writ of the State and want to counter these [terror] groups,” the minister said.

To a question whether Pakistan is considering any action against the hideouts of the banned TTP and other terror outfits inside Afghanistan, Bilawal said that Pakistan’s preference was that the Afghan interim government authorities must take action against them as per their international commitments in the Doha agreement which bound them that they would not allow its soil to be used by any terrorist outfit.

He said Pakistan was ready to provide any assistance if the Afghan interim government needed so. “If they [the Afghan authorities] request us for any assistance [in action against the terrorists], I am sure the government of Pakistan will be ready to extend a helping hand to the Afghan interim government – that should also be a preferable option for Pakistan,” he said.

“As far as the question about any action to be taken by Pakistan itself against the terrorists within Afghanistan, we do not desire to take such a step, but as per the international law, we have the right reserved to take action in self-defence. If there are persistent terrorist attacks and no appropriate action is taken by them [Afghan authorities], then as a last resort such an option is also available,” he said.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023