———- FO says fight against militants to continue with full force
———- Statement comes day after Afghan Minister advised both to resolve issues through dialogue
From Asghar Ali Mubarak
ISLAMABAD: The Foreign Office (FO) ruled out any negotiations with the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) on Thursday, a day after the Afghan deputy interior minister advised both to resolve their issues through dialogue as the violence in Pakistan “is spreading to Afghanistan”.
Responding to media persons’ queries at her weekly news briefing regarding the suggestion, FO Spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said Pakistan expected the Afghan authorities to take urgent action against the terrorist outfits and their leadership for the crimes they are committing and terrorist incidents they are responsible for in Pakistan.
She said Pakistan remained committed to fighting against all the terrorist outfits, which have targeted Pakistan and attempted to derail its friendship with China.
Mumtaz clarified that Chinese projects in Pakistan were functional following a security audit and enhancement of security measures.
The spokesperson vehemently condemned the last night’s terrorist attack in Iran. Expressing solidarity with the Iranian people, she said Pakistan would like to work with Iran to find joint solutions to terrorism.
On the question of Palestine’s fresh bid to gain membership to the UN, the FO spokesperson said Pakistan recognizes the state of Palestine and will support any such move at the UN.
Condemning the ongoing Israeli atrocities in Gaza, she called for international accountability of Israel for its crimes against humanity.
Expressing concerns over the Indian occupation authorities’ decision to deny permission to hold Eidul Fitr prayers at Eidgah in Srinagar, she urged the Indian authorities to respect the rights of the people of Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu & Kashmir (IIOJK) to peaceful assembly and to freely practice their religion.
The spokesperson said Pakistan would continue to extend moral, political, and diplomatic support to the Kashmiri people for the just and peaceful settlement of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute in accordance with the UN Security Council resolutions.
Afghanistan’s Deputy Interior Minister Mohammad Nabi Omari advised Pakistan and the outlawed TTP to resolve their issues through dialogue as the violence in Pakistan “is spreading to Afghanistan”.
Speaking at an event, Omari further said that they (Afghan Taliban) have been through wars and revolutions. “Wars and revolutions create widows, create orphans, destroy the country and the economy,” said the minister.
The Afghan deputy interior minister further warned Islamabad that if the country’s army is a million or ten million, it is “our experience that you cannot win this war”.
Referring to those fighting against Pakistan as brothers, Omari said even if the TTP invokes jihad (holy war), the Afghan Taliban will not interfere.
At the same time, he also advised the TTP and its allied militant groups that “even if they fight for 100 years, we have nothing to do with it”.
“The fighting in Pakistan is creating problems for us and the flames are reaching Afghanistan.”
Two days ago, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said that Afghanistan was the source of the recent wave of terrorism in Pakistan, warning that this cycle would continue until Kabul shut down the training camps and safe havens of the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) there.
Talking to journalists in the Parliament House, Asif said that he visited Afghanistan with a delegation in the past and requested the Taliban leaders to stop terrorism in their neighbourhood.
However, he added, the solution presented by the Afghan side was not workable.
The minister stressed that the Pak-Afghan border should be the same as the other international borders around the world. “People come to Pakistan from Afghanistan on visa and do business here,” he said, adding that this international status of the border was not being respected by Afghanistan.
