PAK-Afghan talks continued in Istanbul on Monday for the third day, but at the time of writing, there were few signs of a breakthrough that could lead to lasting peace, and staunch the wave of terrorism afflicting Pakistan.

Perhaps the biggest stumbling block is the fact that the Afghan Taliban are unwilling to give ironclad guarantees that their soil will not be used by banned groups such as the TTP and the BLA to carry out acts of terrorism against this country.

Complicating matters was the fact — as related by sources — that Kabul’s rulers were “following someone else’s agenda”, an allusion to the recent bonhomie between India and the Taliban. Reportedly, the Taliban have refused to provide written assurances stating that terrorist activity from Afghanistan will stop.

Pakistan must proceed carefully. During the talks, the Afghan side has reportedly urged Pakistan to negotiate with the TTP. This should be a red line for this country as past attempts to reason with the terrorist group have given Pakistan nothing but martyred security men and civilians. Even as the talks in Turkiye were underway, TTP fighters tried to cross the border. At least five troops were martyred in these engagements. Therefore, the Taliban’s offer of arranging a dialogue with the TTP is a non-starter, as the outfit wants to impose its writ through the barrel of the gun.

It is also a fact that terrorist groups in Afghanistan have been given a veritable treasure trove in the form of billions of dollars of American arms and military hardware that the US left behind as it exited Afghanistan in 2021. Large volumes of this deadly ware have ended up in the hands of Al Qaeda and the TTP, and are being used against Pakistan.

The negotiations should continue, and it is hoped this impasse can be resolved peacefully. US President Donald Trump has offered his good offices, saying he could “get that [Pak-Afghan dispute] solved very quickly”. The US leader, who says he has prevented “eight wars”, is welcome to try his hand at Pak-Afghan diplomacy.

But on a more critical note, there can be no permanent peace until terrorist groups based in Afghanistan stop their violent anti-Pakistan campaigns. If Kabul can rein in these outfits, there would be nothing like it. But if the dialogue process goes nowhere, Pakistan must be prepared to defend its frontiers. Intelligence-based operations must be conducted to prevent militants from crossing the border, and targeting innocent Pakistanis.

If the Taliban remain unwilling to stop cross-border terrorism, then, along with using its kinetic options, Pakistan must launch a diplomatic offensive, involving regional allies such as China, the Gulf states, Iran, etc, to freeze the normalisation process with Kabul until it takes verifiable action against terrorist groups.

Published in Dawn, October 28th, 2025