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Pakistan ready to go the extra mile despite Afghan accusations
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President Ghani says Pakistan going easy on Afghan Taliban, Pakistan denies charge
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FO says unfair to accuse Islamabad despite its efforts against terrorism
KABUL/ISLAMABAD: Despite all the rampant allegations propagated by Afghanistan regarding the use of Pakistani soil to foment terror in the country, Pakistan sticks to diplomacy and reiterates goodwill by still sending its delegation to Kabul to boost collective efforts in the war against terrorism in the region.
The Foreign Office’s statement, as well as the National Security Committee’s (NSC) meeting, echoed the sentiment of solidarity even in the backdrop of a recent spate of attacks in the Afghan capital and subsequent accusations by the Afghan authorities, with their president’s the latest.
In the aftermath of the string of violent event in Kabul, both countries have witnessed heightened tensions besides hurling allegations at each other publically. Adding to the long list of allegations, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on Friday accused Pakistan of failing to act against the [Afghan] Taliban; however, Pakistan’s Foreign Office categorically denied these accusations.
In addition to the recent tug of war, Kabul has long accused Pakistan of aiding terrorists by giving shelter and aid to leaders of the Taliban insurgency, a charge denied by Pakistan, which points to the thousands of its own citizens killed by militant violence over the years.
“We are waiting for Pakistan to act,” Ghani said in a televised address, in which he accused Pakistan of being the “Taliban centre”.
Ghani claimed that Afghanistan shared a list of insurgents with the Pakistani government. “We are waiting for movement. Word and process are the words on paper; the Afghan nation wants clear practical action,” the Afghan president demanded.
Afghan and US officials say the Haqqani network, a militant group affiliated with the Taliban and believed to be based in Pakistan, was responsible.
Ghani said 11 arrests had been made and a list of individuals Kabul believed to be behind the attacks as well as the networks that supported them was given to Pakistani authorities.
“The attack is not against our men, women or children but against the Afghan nation and it requires a national, comprehensive response,” Ghani said, adding that security officials would present a new plan on Sunday.
But it was unclear what steps would be taken to improve the last major security plan in Kabul, which established a string of extra checkpoints and heavy vehicle controls after a truck bomb killed 150 people in the city last May.
FO DENIES ANY SUPPORT TO HAQQANIS: Foreign Office (FO) Spokesperson Dr Mohammad Faisal strongly rejected accusations that Pakistan was supporting the Afghan Taliban and Haqqani Network, saying the country will not allow its land to be used against any of its neighbouring states.
The briefing comes shortly after a meeting between top Pakistani and Afghan officials in Islamabad.
Afghanistan’s spy agency chief Mohammad Masoom Stanekzai on Thursday had alleged that the recent attacks in the war-torn country were “planned from across the border [Pakistan]”.
“We asked Pakistan to hand over the culprits of the attacks in Afghanistan and we shared undeniable evidence that the attacks were planned there,” Stanekzai had told reporters in Kabul in a joint presser with Afghan Interior Minister Wais Barmak.
Kabul is on edge after militants stormed a luxury hotel, bombed a crowded street and raided a military compound in the past two weeks.
Afghan authorities have blamed the January 20 attack on the Intercontinental hotel and Saturday’s ambulance bombing on the Haqqani Network. Both attacks have been claimed by the Taliban. Haqqani leader Sirajuddin Haqqani is deputy chief of the Taliban.
During the press briefing, the FO spokesperson said that Pakistan “stands with its Afghan brothers in this hour of grief” and rejected the accusations of supporting the Afghan Taliban and the Haqqani Network.
Pakistan has been rendering continuous sacrifices for the cause of global peace. It will not allow its land to be used against any of its neighbouring countries, and it expects the same from its neighbours, said the spokesperson.
He further stated that the primary focus should be on eliminating havens of the TTP and Jamaatul Ahrar in Afghanistan. Pakistan has constructed 975 posts along its border with Afghanistan, while Afghanistan has built nearly 200 posts only, said Faisal.
The spokesperson noted that 27 suspects handed over to Afghan authorities recently were affiliated with the Afghan Taliban and Haqqani Network, adding that 470 attacks were carried out in Pakistan from Afghanistan.
FIRST MEETING OF JOINT WORKING GROUP: The FO spokesperson said that Foreign Secretary Tehmina Janjua will head a Pakistani delegation visiting Kabul on Saturday, where the first scheduled meeting of Pakistani and Afghan joint working groups is scheduled to take place.
He said that Pakistan had proposed five joint working groups which focus on ensuring comprehensive engagement for countering terrorism, intelligence sharing, military, economy, trade and transit interaction, refugee repatriation and connectivity.
A recent attack on the Intercontinental Hotel in Kabul and a suicide bombing on a crowded city street a week later have stoked public anger in Afghanistan and stepped up pressure on Ghani’s Western-backed government to improve security.
The attacks, which killed more than 130 people and wounded hundreds more, were claimed by the Taliban, which is fighting to drive out international troops and re-establish its form of strict Islamic law in Afghanistan.
