KHYBER: The second round of the much-awaited parleys between jirga members of Pakistan and Afghanistan ended on a positive note with the Afghan side asking for a final ‘recess’ to get approval from their higher authorities for agreeing to Pakistan’s conditions.

The meeting, which lasted about two hours on Monday, was held at the Customs Offi­ces (Gumruk) on the Afghan side of the border with repe­ated changes in the names and number of members of the Pakistan delegation.

Sources among the Pakistani delegation later told Dawn that a detailed discussion was held between the two sides over the issue of construction of a controversial post, very close to the border at Zero Point on the Afghan side.

The Afghan side, they said, was told that any misadventure by them regarding any change in the existing structure, close to the Zero Point border crossing, would be met with a stern response from Pakistan.

Afghan side insists on border reopening without any prior conditions; Pakistan wants it linked to six-month ceasefire

“We expressed our desire for a halt to hostilities bet­ween the two neighbouring countries with the Afghan side giving a firm assurance about permanently abiding by the agreed border protocols,” the sources said.

They said the issue of the Durand Line also indirectly resonated during the course of discussions as the Afghan side insisted on reopening the border without any prior condition and stressing that the border opening should not be made conditional with any construction on either side of the border.

The sources said that the two sides were at a time eng­aged in a heated discussion when the Afghan delegation, consisting mostly of members of the Afghan Chamber of Commerce and Industries, linked the construction of the controversial check post on their side to the construction of the sprawling Customs Terminal on Pakistan side, which is situated over one kilometer inside Pakistani territory from the main border Zero Point.

It was further learnt that the Pakistan delegation made it clear to their Afghan counterparts that the border reopening is directly linked to a temporary ceasefire between the two countries, possibly till mid-June, with the higher authorities on both sides finding an amicable solution to the security issues on border during the said period while keeping the border crossing open for all type of legitimate cross-border activities.

The sources said that the Afghan delegation was told that as long as their government cherished the plan of constructing the controversial check post, close to the border crossing, no headway could be made in reopening the border nor could the shattered trust be restored between the two countries.

They said the Afghan delegation was reminded that Pakistan had never objected to the renovation or any expansion on their side while Pakistan also kept quiet over the rebuilding of a high altitude security check post atop the Shamshad Sar, a mountain on the Afghan side overlooking the Torkham border.

The sources, however, contended that the meeting ended on a positive note with the Afghan side requesting for more time to consult with their higher authorities about halting construction work over the controversial check post and also a two and half month ceasefire during which the border will remain open.

There was, however, some acrimony among the Pakistani delegates over repeated changes in the names and numbers of delegates with the Khyber Chamber members using pressure tactics to include their ‘favourites’ among the delegates.

The sources said that most of the Khyber Chamber nominees were inexperienced and completely ignorant about the current border issue while the security officials too had expressed their reservations over the names of some of these nominees.

They said that tribal traditions do not allow the constitution of such a long jirga as a large jirga becomes a ‘mob’ and it is also difficult to control. “The Khyber Chamber member wanted to take the lead role as the Afghan side too was predominantly composed of members of the Afghan Chamber of Commerce,” they added.

Published in Dawn, March 18th, 2025