Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Asif has said that the Afghan Taliban’s support for Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) continues.
Geo News reported on Monday night, June 1, that Asif was responding to reports claiming that Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada had warned the TTP to stop carrying out attacks inside Pakistan. Asif said the issue had only been discussed in the media and that there were no signs of change in practice.
He added that the Taliban leadership must clearly and officially end its support for the TTP and deliver a clear message on the matter.
Referring to what he described as the Taliban’s “contradictory signals,” the Pakistani defense minister warned that trusting such messages would be dangerous because, according to him, no practical steps had been taken to restrain armed groups opposed to Pakistan.
Asif also said that despite multiple rounds of talks between Islamabad and the Taliban, the two sides have not yet reached an agreement on tackling armed groups based in Afghanistan.
In another part of his remarks, he accused India of using Afghanistan to wage a proxy war against Pakistan and said Pakistan’s armed forces were prepared to respond to any potential threat.
The remarks come as tensions between the Taliban and Pakistan over cross-border attacks and the activities of the TTP continue to challenge relations between the two sides.
