Muhammad Atta Ullah Khan 

It is a well known fact that peace and security in our region have remained hostage to the volatile situation in Afghanistan for the last four decades. Even after the exit of NATO forces and the establishment of Taliban rule, there has been no significant change in the situation as far as the phenomenon of terrorism is concerned, which has affected all its neighbours including Pakistan.

Diplomacy was Given Chances:

It was in the backdrop of the prevailing situation in Afghanistan, where host of terrorist groups  have established base camps, that, two quadrilateral meetings were held recently to deliberate on regional peace and security. One was held on 25th September, 2025 on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session at the invitation of the Russian Federation, which was attended by Pakistan, China, Iran, and Russia. The second meeting was convened on October 07 , 2025 in Moscow, which reaffirmed the recommendations made in the first huddle.

Major recommendations and observations of the moot :

 1- Afghanistan must fulfil its international commitments and not allow terrorist groups based on its soil to carry out attacks against any other country.

2-NATO members should bear responsibility for the current situation in Afghanistan and create opportunities for its economic recovery, future development, and prosperity; lift unilateral sanctions against it and return its overseas assets for the people of Afghanistan.

3- Afghanistan should be supported as an independent, united, and peaceful state free from terrorism, and a regional initiative should be put in place to uplift the Afghan economy, paving the way for active integration of Afghanistan into regional economic cooperation; humanitarian assistance by the international community, delinking it from political considerations.

 4- EU and NATO must  continue counterterrorism cooperation at bilateral and multilateral levels with Afghanistan in eliminating terrorist groups and help preventing the use of Afghan territory against neighbouring countries. 

 5-Afghan government led by Taliban must create conditions for the return of refugees and their reintegration into political and social processes and

the international community and donors must provide adequate, predictable, regular, and sustainable financial support and other necessary assistance in line with the principles of international responsibility and burden-sharing for time-bound repatriation of refugees.

 6- Afghanistan must build an inclusive and broad-based system of governance where women have access to education and economic opportunities; the sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity of Afghanistan must be respected; all countries responsible for the current situation in Afghanistan must refrain from seeking military bases in and around Afghanistan.

The foregoing deliberations show the genuine concerns of regional countries about the threat to peace and regional security posed by terrorist entities based on Afghan soil and the obligations of the Afghan government in that regard. They also indicate their serious intentions to help Afghanistan end its global alienation and rebuild its destroyed infrastructure with regional and global assistance.

It is pertinent to mention that in the recent past, China, Pakistan, and Afghanistan held three rounds of tripartite talks during which they committed themselves to bolstering joint efforts against the menace of terrorism and deepening their collaboration in key spheres. They also reaffirmed their commitment to deepening collaboration in trade, transit, regional development, health, education, culture, and combating drug trafficking, as well as the extension of CPEC to Afghanistan.

In the backdrop of the foregoing series of meetings  and the decisions taken in them, Pakistan and Afghanistan decided to upgrade their diplomatic relations to the ambassadorial level, which was billed as a good augury regarding fighting the menace of terrorism and the prospects of promised regional connectivity.

But regrettably, Afghanistan has not taken any credible action against the terrorist groups operating from its soil. Instead, there has been an exponential increase in acts of terrorism in KPK and Balochistan. Pakistan has always sought good relations with Afghanistan and has been a strong proponent of an Afghan-owned and Afghan-led solution to the conflict in that country, for which it made relentless efforts at bilateral and multilateral forums. In the end, it also facilitated the Doha Agreement between the Taliban and the USA.

Pakistan understands the stakes in regional and internal peace, which is impossible without the improvement of relations with Afghanistan and the cooperation of the latter in dealing with the phenomenon of terrorism. China’s role as an influencer and its engagement with Afghanistan promise vast potential for stability, regional integration, and development. In the backdrop of the Taliban’s efforts to seek global recognition, engagement with China can play a decisive role in that direction. That outcome, however, will greatly depend on Afghanistan’s readiness to exhibit its unswerving commitment to actively engage in crafting a regional cooperative environment by taking harsh decisions against terrorism and effecting changes in domestic policies as agreed in the Doha Agreement.

The Taliban government in Afghanistan owes it to the people of Afghanistan, who have endured four decades of war and instability, to establish peace within their own land and work for their economic emancipation. That is impossible without the cooperation of regional countries and the support of the global community. They need a new beginning. It is hoped that the Taliban government will stick to the commitments they have made in the trilateral dialogue, which are loaded with transformational prospects. The biggest challenge for Afghanistan, and more so for Pakistan, is dealing with the burgeoning phenomenon of terrorism, which unfortunately emanates from Afghan soil, where TTP and BLA have sanctuaries. Cooperation in political and economic domains and the extension of CPEC are undoubtedly contingent upon effectively dealing with and eliminating the phenomenon of terrorism.

It sets the agenda for dialogue between Pakistan and Afghanistan for devising a mechanism to deal with terrorism and ending the sanctuaries of terrorist groups on Afghan soil. That would be a pivotal factor in normalising relations between the two countries. Peaceful conditions in Afghanistan and the elimination of terrorism will also facilitate the completion of trans-regional projects like TAPI and CASA-1000, which have remained in limbo for a long time due to the volatile situation in Afghanistan.

As is evident, the envisaged bonhomie between Pakistan and Afghanistan, apart from resolving security issues, also holds great economic prospects for both of them as well as the region. Therefore, the Taliban government in Afghanistan has to strictly abide by the agreement reached with Pakistan and China in the tripartite talks. Afghanistan will be the biggest beneficiary of this envisaged shift in its relations with Pakistan and China.

Policy Options For Pakistan: 

a- Pakistan has to chalk out a comprehensive internal security policy by taking on board all political parties to adopt a unified narrative on counter-terrorism. It is all the most important because there shall be no iota of confusion among people of Pakistan regarding steps being taken by government to fight this menace. It becomes more important in the backdrop of Afghan Taliban Foreign Minister Muttaqi ‘s repeated allegations that terrorism in Pakistan is ” home grown ” and that “Pakistan shall put its own house in order instead of blaming Afghanistan “.

b- The Federal Government shall come on front foot and take ownership of anti- terrorism operations being conducted by LEAs instead of totally rellying on ISPR briefings which are undoubtedly very comprehensive however, there is a need that Interior Ministry shall also arrange weekly press briefings on progress being made in countering terrorism. 

C- The Federal Ministry of Information shall collaborate with Ministry of IT to scan the negative propaganda against state of Pakistan and shall use social media on daily basis to negate such propaganda because in absence of a counter narrative the public starts focusing their attention to malicious propaganda being spread on various platforms of social media meant to wage Psywarfare against Pakistan. 

The author is former Joint Director General Intelligence Bureau