PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan on Wednesday said that the party would stand with Pakistan if hostilities with Afghanistan resume.

Pakistan and Afghanistan saw a worsening of ties in recent weeks, which saw border skirmishes, counter-statements and and allegations.

The hostilities began earlier this month when an attack was launched on Pakistan from Afghanistan on the night of October 11. The attack had followed an allegation from the Afghan Taliban of airstrikes by Pakistan into Afghanistan — an accusation which Islamabad has neither confirmed nor denied.

Responding to a question on Geo News programme ‘Capital Talk’, Gohar said that the PTI would stand with Pakistan in case hostilities with Afghanistan erupt once again, like they did during Islamabad’s brief war with India in May.

“We will stand with Pakistan like we did during the war with India, Afghanistan will not be any different,” he said. “But I will say that Pakistan has to live with its neighbours and it’s in its best interest to live peacefully.”

The PTI chairman quoted a saying in relation to the Afghan situation: “The one who has the most at stake must exhaust all avenues.”

“We have a lot at stake; if Afghanistan has a dialogue going, we need to try other avenues until we reach a consensus,” he stated. “As far as the Afghanistan situation is concerned, it is a serious one, because the Taliban do not completely control the country.”

“If the Afghan Taliban attacked Pakistan, obviously, the response would be like with India, but that does not mean that talking stops during war. Dialogue should happen by all means, but right now, especially, nations friendly to Pakistan should try and use their influence and talk to the Taliban.”

The PTI chairman also noted that Pakistan has the right to defend itself under the UN Charter, but that “Afghanistan has the same right”.

“As neighbours, we need to understand each other,” he said.

For its part, Islamabad has long demanded that the Taliban stop terror groups from using its soil against Pakistan. They, however, deny the allegation of allowing terrorists to operate from Afghan soil.

Meanwhile, Pakistan continues to grapple with the issue of terrorism and has suffered multiple casualties among security forces in intelligence-based operations.

After the initial skirmish on October 11, multiple others took place along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. Meanwhile, strikes by Islamabad also targeted Gul Bahadur group camps in Afghanistan.