New Delhi, Nov 18 Even as countries join in offering mediation between Afghanistan and Pakistan to find an amicable solution to their border conflict, mystery shrouds the visit of a high-profile delegation from Turkiye with more than a week passing since Ankara’s pledge.
Incidentally, Turkiye hosted the last two rounds of peace talks with delegations from Kabul and Islamabad meeting in its largest city of Istanbul, to find the mechanisms towards achieving a truce as agreed by the warring nations in their Doha talks earlier.
Qatar is the other country jointly mediating the peace process. According to an official readout on November 9, President Tayyip Erdogan had announced that Turkiye’s Foreign and Defence ministers, along with the Intelligence chief were expected to travel to Pakistan that week (ending November 16) to discuss Islamabad’s inconclusive ceasefire talks with Afghanistan.
Last weekend, Afghanistan’s Tolo News reported that “neither Pakistan nor Turkey has clarified the issue, raising several questions”.
The report quoted analysts observing that the silence from both Ankara and Islamabad “indicates the complexity of the issue, suggesting that this problem is not easily resolvable”.
It added that if Turkiye’s “delegation has indeed travelled to Pakistan, the discussions may be happening behind closed doors. However, if the visit has been postponed, it signals deep disagreements between Kabul and Islamabad”.
Pakistan media meanwhile reported last Sunday, citing announcements by a Russian broadcaster, that Moscow has urged Kabul and Islamabad to resolve their differences through political and diplomatic means and also offered to assist both sides in lowering tensions.
According to reports, the proposal was announced by Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova, who said regional stability remains a key priority for Moscow and the international community.
This follows the Iran Foreign Minister’s recent announcement on Tehran’s efforts to organise a regional meeting in the coming days to help ease tensions between the two countries locked in a verbal dual and occasionally exchanging fire across its volatile border.
Iran’s Abbas Araghchi expressed hope that his country’s efforts would lead to “tangible outcomes” and pave the way for a broader regional dialogue.
In a latest statement from Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry, Islamabad has welcomed Iran’s proposal to host talks aimed at reducing tensions between Kabul and Islamabad.
The global community, including the United Nations, has been voicing concerns over the skirmishes and existence of terror elements along the porous border marked by the Durand Line.
The spurt in hostility, with sporadic armed skirmishes and frequent raids across the border, coupled with renewed debate over the Durand Line itself, have further worsened the situation. A long-term truce effort, brokered by regional players, failed after Islamabad and Kabul continued to stick to their stand of no compromise on their respective demands.
Islamabad carried out airstrikes on Kabul and Paktika early October which it claimed were aimed at terror groups inside Afghanistan, sparking strong protests from Kabul which soon launched a fierce attack across the border points.
The hostilities led to Qatar and Turkiye initiating mediation talks between Afghanistan and Pakistan in Doha and Istanbul. However, the follow-up talks – after the initial round succeeding in signing a truce – fell flat with both sides blaming the other for “unreasonable demands”.
Tolo News quoted the views of political analyst Barna Salehi, who stated that unless major powers like the US, Russia, and China are involved, the Pak-Afghan border issue cannot be resolved.
Following the failure of the Afghanistan-Pakistan talks brokered by regional players, renewed efforts to ease tensions between Kabul and Islamabad continue. However, these initiatives are yet to yield tangible results.
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