Spokesperson says both countries actively communicating but ‘no formal govt currently exists in Kabul’
The current Afghan Taliban regime in place in Afghanistan is not truly representative of the Afghan people, said the Foreign Office on Friday.
FO Spokesperson Shafqat Ali briefed the media on the prevailing situation. Pakistan’s embassy in Kabul and the Afghanistan embassy in Islamabad are both fully functional and routine diplomatic communiqués are continuing, he said.
Yet, the spokesperson declared, “no formal government currently exists in Kabul, and a group is holding power by force”. The current administration in Kabul does not represent the Afghan people, said Ali. “Afghans will one day elect a government led by their true representatives.”
Initial direct contacts were made during the past week after tensions escalated with both sides reporting heavy losses in clashes along the Pak-Afghan border last weekend. This was done with support of friendly countries, said the FO spokesperson, adding that there no negotiations or agreements pertaining to Doha at the moment.
A 48-hour ceasefire was set in place last Wednesday at 6pm.
Ali underscored that Pakistan’s targeted precision strikes were defensive and not directed against the Afghan people. Pakistan continues to prefer dialogue as the way forward, he added.
The Afghan Taliban regime cannot absolve itself from its obligation to ensure peace and stability in the region and beyond by deflecting responsibility from failure to control terrorism against Pakistan, asserted the FO spokesperson.
“Pakistan has hosted four million Afghan citizens and remains committed to legal and humanitarian measures regarding their presence,” he said.
He condemned the desecration of bodies by the Afghan Taliban. “This is unacceptable,” said Ali, adding that the matter has been raised before the administration in Kabul.
Islamabad reiteriated its concerns over provocations from the Afghan Taliban and terrorist groups Fitna al-Khawarij and Fitna al-Hindustan.
Read: Suicide attack on security forces’ camp in North Waziristan’s Mir Ali foiled
The latter two are terms the state introduced after the war with India in May 2025, with the first referring to terrorists affiliated with proscribed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the second typically reserved for banned separatist outfits.
The spokesperson rejected statements by Afghanistan Interim Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi made in India and criticised the joint statement issued during the interim foreign minister’s visit to India, wherein he described Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) as part of India. “This is tantamount to denying the rights of the people of occupied Kashmir,” said Ali.
The spokesperson highlighted India’s support for terrorist groups in Afghanistan, including the TTP and banned outfit Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), through training facilities, nurseries, and other activities. “India’s negative role is no secret, and statements from its Ministry of Foreign Affairs are publicly known.”
Ali repeated that Islamabad vehemently rejects Afghanistan’s acting foreign minister’s assertion that terrorism is Islamabad’s “internal problem”.
He said that references to Jammu and Kashmir as part of India violate relevant United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions and disregard the legal status of the territory.
Also read: Pakistan accepts Afghan Taliban regime’s request for 48-hour ceasefire
The joint statement, he added, was highly insensitive to the sacrifices and sentiments of the people of IIOJK in their just struggle for the right to self-determination.
Pakistan is maintaining contacts with the ruling group in Kabul while pressing for action against terrorism, according to the FO spokesperson.
Pakistan-Afghanistan ceasefire
A confrontation took place on the night of October 11–12, when Afghan Taliban forces, supported by “Indian-sponsored elements of Fitna al-Khawarij,” launched an unprovoked attack on Pakistan along the border, according to the military’s media wing.
“The cowardly action, which included fire and a few physical raids, was aimed at destabilizing the border areas to facilitate terrorism, furthering FAK’s nefarious designs,” said Inter-Services Public Relations in a statement.
The security forces, exercising the right of self-defence, repelled the assaults decisively along the border and inflicted heavy casualties on Taliban forces and affiliated Khawarij terrorists, said ISPR.
On October 15, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban regime have agreed to a 48-hour ceasefire after Pakistan’s ‘precision strikes’ on Taliban and terrorist hideouts in Kandahar and Kabul.
According to the ministry, the decision was made at the Taliban’s request and with the mutual consent of both sides. During the ceasefire, both parties will hold constructive dialogue to make sincere efforts to find a positive solution to a complex but solvable issue, the ministry had said.
“This temporary pause aims at creating space for meaningful discussions and promote stability along the border,” the ministry said in a statement.
