• Khawaja Asif threatens ‘bitter taste’ for attacks originating from Afghan soil
• Warns repeat of 2001 Tora Bora bombing launched by US, allies
• Tarar regrets Afghan side gives no assurances despite ‘irrefutable’ evidence
• Iranian president offers to mediate, calls for de-escalation
• Naqvi meets Iranian, Afghan officials, seeks dialogue
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan on Wednesday warned Afghanistan’s Taliban regime of strong retaliation if any terrorist attack on its soil originates from Afghan territory, a day after talks in Istanbul collapsed without progress on curbing cross-border terrorism.
Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, who had earlier cautioned that there could be “open war” if the talks failed, issued a blunt warning in a statement posted on X (formerly Twitter), saying the Afghan Taliban had probably misread Pakistan’s “resolve and courage” by not agreeing to address its security concerns.
“Any terrorist attack or any suicide bombing inside Pakistan shall give you the bitter taste of such misadventures,” Mr Asif said. “Be rest assured and test our resolve and capabilities, if you wish so, at your own peril and doom.”
He warned the Taliban of severe consequences if Pakistan was provoked. “Pakistan does not require employing even a fraction of its full arsenal to completely obliterate the Taliban regime and push them back to the caves for hiding,” he said. “If they wish so, the repeat of the scenes of their rout at Tora Bora … would surely be a spectacle to watch for the people of the region.”
As Mr Asif issued his warning, seven militants were killed and six Pakistani soldiers were martyred in a Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) bombing and ambush on a military convoy in Kurram district on Wednesday.
The minister’s warning followed four days of talks in Istanbul between delegations from Pakistan and Afghanistan that ended late Tuesday without an agreement.
The dialogue round, mediated by Turkiye and Qatar, was meant to build on an earlier ceasefire reached in Doha on Oct 18 and to establish a verification mechanism for Taliban action against the TTP, the banned terrorist group blamed for attacks inside Pakistan.
The talks, originally planned for one day, were extended after mediators pressed both sides to keep talking. Despite moments of apparent progress, officials said the negotiations ultimately stalled over Afghanistan’s refusal to provide written assurances to neutralise the TTP and prevent attacks from its soil.
End of talks
Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar announced the end of the talks, saying the Afghan Taliban delegation failed to give a commitment to neutralise the TTP threat from their country.
“Over the last four days of dialogue, the Afghan Taliban delegation repeatedly agreed to Pakistan’s logical and legitimate demand for credible and decisive action against these organisations and terrorists,” Mr Tarar said. “Sufficient and irrefutable evidence was provided by Pakistan and acknowledged by the hosts. However, regrettably, the Afghan side gave no assurances.”
Mr Tarar accused the Taliban negotiators of repeatedly diverting from the core issue and engaging in “blame game, deflection and ruses”. He added, “The dialogue thus failed to bring about any workable solution.”
The minister also accused the Taliban leadership of sustaining a war economy and seeking to prolong instability.
“Since the Taliban regime bears no responsibility towards the people of Afghanistan and thrives on a war economy, it desires to drag and mire the Afghan people into a needless war,” he said. “Unfortunately, they have always remained indifferent to Pakistan’s losses.”
A senior Pakistani security official said the talks hit a roadblock because the Afghan Taliban were “unwilling to take verifiable action” against militant groups.
“The talks remain inconclusive after the Afghan Taliban regime’s lack of commitment to curb terrorism,” the official said. “Pakistan’s core demand to take verifiable action against TTP remains unaddressed.”
The failure of the Istanbul talks left the temporary ceasefire fragile, though it remained intact for the time being.
Officials said both sides remained in Istanbul through Wednesday and that Kabul had reached out to Islamabad following the breakdown; the outcome of that outreach was not known.
The United Nations also urged restraint amid the collapse of the talks. “Of course, we very much hope that even if the talks have stalled, there will not be a resumption of hostilities,” UN spokesperson Stéph-ane Dujarric said.
Iran offers to mediate
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has offered to help defuse tensions between Kabul and Islamabad, urging both sides to avoid escalation and pursue dialogue.
“We believe that all efforts should focus on reducing tensions and avoiding any form of confrontation,” Mr Pezeshkian said during a meeting with Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi in Tehran, according to the interior ministry’s media wing.
Mr Naqvi is in Tehran to attend the fourth Economic Cooperation Organisation (ECO) Interior Ministers Meeting.
Mr Pezeshkian said Muslim countries must work together to reduce conflict and stand united against shared threats, stressing the need to prevent further escalation in the region.
Reaffirming Iran’s readiness to support peace efforts, the president said Tehran “attaches special importance to its relations with Pakistan and can never forget the boundless support of its brotherly neighbour”. He also expressed satisfaction over the current state of bilateral ties, adding that both countries possess vast potential to enhance cooperation in various fields.
Mr Naqvi described the recent Pakistan-Afghanistan talks in Istanbul as “constructive”, while emphasising that disputes should be solved through peaceful dialogue.
The interior minister also met Afghanistan’s Deputy Interior Minister Mullah Ibrahim Sadr on the sidelines of the ministerial conference and urged dialogue to settle differences.
“We will resolve differences through negotiations like brotherly countries,” he said. “Differences also occur at home, but we will settle them through dialogue as brothers.”
Separately, Mr Naqvi met the Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, Ali Ardeshir Larijani, and Iran’s Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni. Mr Larijani received the Pakistani minister at the council’s secretariat.
During the meetings, the two sides discussed strengthening ties. They exchanged views on counterterrorism, counter-narcotics and border management, and underscored the importance of enhancing joint mechanisms for collaboration.
Mr Naqvi said Pakistan seeks to expand cooperation with Iran in security and counter-narcotics. Mr Larijani termed recent progress in bilateral ties a welcome development. In a separate session between the interior ministers, both sides discussed ways to deepen cooperation on internal security.
Mr Naqvi congratulated his Iranian counterpart on hosting the ECO ministerial conference, saying it would have far-reaching outcomes for member states. He added that Pakistan hopes to benefit from Iran’s experience in internal security.
He invited Mr Momeni to visit Pakistan. The Iranian minister said he would travel to Islamabad soon and thanked his counterpart for attending the ECO meeting.
Federal Secretary Interior Khurram Agha, Pakistan’s Ambassador to Iran Muhammad Mudassir Tipu, senior officials of Iran’s interior ministry and diplomatic officers were present on the occasion.
Iftikhar A. Khan also contributed to this report
Published in Dawn, October 30th, 2025
