Pakistan’s Defense Minister, Khawaja Asif, has said that despite several rounds of talks between Pakistani officials and the Taliban, Islamabad has failed to obtain written guarantees that Afghan territory would not be used for attacks against Pakistan.
Speaking in Pakistan’s National Assembly on Tuesday, June 16, Asif said political, military, and intelligence officials from Pakistan had repeatedly engaged with the Taliban over the years, but the negotiations had not produced the desired outcome.
Rejecting criticism that Pakistan had not sufficiently engaged with the Taliban, he said he had personally led two high-level delegations to Afghanistan and had also met Taliban officials during meetings in Turkey and Qatar.
The defense minister added that Taliban officials agreed to many proposals during the negotiations but consistently refused to provide written commitments.
He further claimed that during one of the talks, the Taliban requested $10 billion in financial assistance from Pakistan. According to Asif, Islamabad expressed its willingness to cooperate but sought assurances in return that individuals and armed groups based in Afghanistan would not carry out activities against Pakistan.
Asif emphasized that Pakistan had been prepared to cooperate with the Taliban in various areas, but its sole demand had been guarantees preventing the use of Afghan territory for attacks against Pakistan.
The defense minister also said that the roots of many attacks in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa trace back to Taliban-controlled Afghanistan, adding that Islamabad has exhausted diplomatic channels in an effort to secure the Taliban’s cooperation.
He noted that Pakistan continues to support dialogue but expects future negotiations to produce practical and measurable outcomes.
