Islamabad acknowledges Beijing’s efforts to scale back; Says policy change unlikely without verifiable assurances
Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Photo: File
ISLAMABAD:
Pakistan has politely told China that it will continue with its existing policy of non-engagement with the Taliban regime, citing Kabul’s failure to change its position on the presence of the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and other terrorist groups operating from Afghan soil.
The response effectively means Islamabad has rejected the latest diplomatic effort by Beijing, a close ally, aimed at easing tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan.
China recently stepped up its diplomatic engagement by sending its special envoy on Afghanistan to both Kabul and Islamabad as part of a broader effort to defuse simmering tensions between the two neighbors.
According to a statement issued by China’s Foreign Ministry, Foreign Minister Wang Yi also held a telephone conversation with Afghanistan’s Acting Foreign Minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi to discuss the situation.
China’s foreign ministry said its special envoy on Afghanistan was currently shuttling between Afghanistan and Pakistan in an attempt to mediate. “China hopes that both sides will remain calm and exercise restraint, hold face-to-face talks as soon as possible, achieve an early ceasefire and resolve disputes and differences through dialogue,” the statement said.
Beijing also reiterated that it is prepared to continue making active efforts to facilitate reconciliation and ease tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Sources privy to the development told The Express Pakinomist that while Pakistan acknowledged China’s sincere efforts to defuse the crisis, it made it clear that a return to normal diplomatic engagement with Kabul was not possible without tangible changes on the ground.
According to the sources, Pakistani authorities informed the Chinese side that Islamabad had already exhausted all diplomatic avenues before adopting its current policy towards the Taliban government.
Pakistan, the sources said, had raised its concerns through bilateral channels as well as through friendly countries in a bid to resolve what it described as the long-standing problem of Taliban rule harboring the TTP and other militant groups.
However, sources here said meetings between the Chinese envoy and Pakistani officials led Islamabad to conclude that the Taliban leadership had not changed its position.
According to officials familiar with the discussions, Taliban officials reiterated to the Chinese envoy their longstanding position that the TTP issue was Pakistan’s “internal problem,” while maintaining that Afghan territory was not being used against neighboring countries.
Pakistani officials rejected this claim, citing what they described as ample evidence, including UN Security Council reports, which they say confirm Islamabad’s position regarding the presence and activities of TTP terrorists in Afghanistan.
Under these circumstances, Pakistan communicated to Beijing that there was little room for meaningful diplomatic progress unless Kabul took concrete steps to address Islamabad’s concerns.
At his weekly press briefing, Foreign Ministry spokesman Tahir Andrabi confirmed that Pakistan would maintain its current policy towards Afghanistan despite calls from some friendly countries to cooperate with Taliban authorities.
“Regarding the situation in Afghanistan, the situation is the same. We have emphatically communicated to Afghanistan and to our interlocutors that we need verifiable assurances from the Afghan side that their territory will not be used for terrorism against Pakistan,” Andrabi said while responding to a question about the mediation efforts.
“As these assurances have not been received, we will continue with our existing policy with respect to that country,” he added.
Nevertheless, it is believed that while Pakistan is sticking to its overall stance, the possibility of a temporary lull in hostilities during Eid is not ruled out.
