Pakistan’s war rhetoric against Afghanistan is intensifying again. The peace talks supported by Turkey and Qatar failed, with both sides threatening each other with violence. On Tuesday, Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif accused the Taliban regime in Afghanistan of acting at the behest of India, calling it a proxy of New Delhi. Asif threatened that any aggression against Islamabad would be met with a response “50 times stronger.”
Asif, while speaking to the Pakistani media, accused the Taliban leadership of being manipulated by New Delhi.
“The people in Kabul pulling the strings and staging the puppet show are being controlled by Delhi,” he said, as quoted by Dawn.
India Is Using Afghanistan, Accuses Pakistan
Asif also alleged India was using Afghanistan to make up for what he described as its “defeat on their western border,” a reference to the military standoff between the two countries in May.
“Whenever we got close to an agreement when negotiators reported to Kabul, there was intervention, and the agreement was withdrawn,” he told the channel.
Responding to Pakistan’s accusation that India was behind Afghanistan’s recent assault, India’s Ministry of External Affairs dismissed the charge and pointed to Islamabad’s record on terrorism. At the weekly press briefing, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said: “Three things are clear. One, Pakistan hosts terrorist organisations and sponsors terrorist activities. Two, it is an old practice of Pakistan to blame its neighbours for its own internal failures. Three, Pakistan is infuriated with Afghanistan exercising sovereignty over its own territories.”
Afghanistan-Pakistan Peace Talks Fail
Asif made these comments after the collapse of the latest round of peace talks between Pakistan and Afghanistan held in Turkey. According to Reuters, both sides had earlier agreed to a ceasefire on October 19 in Doha but were unable to make progress in Istanbul; each side blamed the other for the stalemate.
The talks, mediated by Turkey and Qatar, concluded Monday without any breakthrough. Mediators described continued dialogue as encouraging, though Islamabad’s demand for verifiable action against the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which Pakistan says operates from Afghan territory, remained the central sticking point.
Reacting to Afghan warnings of retaliation, Asif issued a stark message, “If Afghanistan even looks at Islamabad, we will gouge their eyes out. There should be no doubt that Kabul is responsible for the terrorism in Pakistan.”
Zubair Amin is a Senior Journalist at NewsX with over seven years of experience in reporting and editorial work. He has written for leading national and international publications, including Foreign Policy Magazine, Al Jazeera, The Economic Times, The Indian Express, The Wire, Article 14, Mongabay, News9, among others. His primary focus is on international affairs, with a strong interest in US politics and policy. He also writes on West Asia, Indian polity, and constitutional issues. Zubair tweets at zubaiyr.amin
