Editorial: Taliban Do Not Want To Become Pakistan's Puppet
But points like the Durand Line help keep the emotional fire burning.
Rozana Spokesman Latest Editorial: Taliban Do Not Want To Become Pakistan's Puppet: Although a two-day temporary ceasefire has been in place between Pakistan and Afghanistan since Wednesday evening, the two sides still do not seem to be ready to reach an agreement. From the statements of Pakistani ministers and the ongoing media propaganda, it seems that the country has taken the seven-day visit of Taliban government Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttahida Qadri to India as an anti-Pakistan move and has chosen the path of increasing border tensions to teach the Taliban a ‘lesson’.
On the other hand, the Afghan government is also giving indications that it will not bow down to Pakistani bullying. Although it has negligible air power, it has been targeting Pakistani border posts with ground troops. Road trade between the two countries has come to a standstill and this is causing huge economic losses to both countries.
Afghan Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid claims that the ceasefire was implemented in view of the Pakistani request. He also said that if Pakistan bombs Afghan soil again, it will be responded to more brutally and the bilateral war will not be limited to one region but will spread to the entire border. On the other hand, the Pakistani spokesperson, explaining the reason for the ceasefire, said that ‘wise’ countries like the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia wanted the fratricidal war to end as soon as possible. Therefore, as the elder brother, Pakistan has appealed to the Afghan Taliban to stop the attacks and adopt the path of dialogue.
In fact, it is the elder brother’s coin-operated policy that has alienated the Afghan Taliban from Pakistan. When the Taliban returned to Afghan government in 2021, the Pakistani intelligence agency ISI The presence of the then head of the ISI, Lieutenant General Faiz Hamid, in Kabul and his interference in the internal affairs of the Taliban had created the impression that the Pakistani government wanted to keep the Taliban government under its control. The Pakistani government has not made any serious effort to remove this impression. On the contrary, the Afghan government has been trying to show that it is not under the thumb of Pakistan or the ISI.
That is why it first approached the Indian government and invited it to become a partner in the reconstruction of Afghanistan. American diplomat Zalmay Khalilzad, who facilitated the Doha (Qatar) talks between the Taliban and the Biden administration, says, “If the Pakistani government (or army) had not strengthened Daesh (the Islamic State) to destabilize the Taliban, Afghan support for the TTP (Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan) would have been easily cut off. The path to peace between the two neighboring countries has to start from Islamabad. If Pakistan does not show goodwill towards this, its border with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province will never be peaceful.”
The Afghan-Pakistan relationship has never been a stable one. It has been ‘sometimes friendly, sometimes hostile’. The Afghans have never accepted the Durand Line, which defines the Pak-Afghan border, as a permanent border. They have argued that this 2640 km long border line was forcibly imposed on the Afghans by the British rule of the Indian subcontinent after the Third Anglo-Afghan War of 1919. They have been considering the entire Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province as Afghan territory. This Afghan stand is anathema to Pakistan. Borders are not easy to change, especially in the present times.
But points like the Durand Line help keep the emotional fire burning. Such a phenomenon is happening even now. India is getting the benefit of ‘partner’s partner – our friend’ from this situation. That is why Pakistan has been alleging that the TTP is also getting arms and ammunition from India, as well as medical and financial assistance. Despite such a situation, the need of the hour is that the violent confrontation should end as soon as possible. The real loss from the violence is being done to the civilian population of both the countries. They have not been able to enjoy peace for many decades. A little diplomatic bargaining can make the return of peace possible. The beginning should be with the current ceasefire.