- Khawaja Asif claims ‘negotiations are over for now,’ saying ceasefire still intact but there is no written accord
- Islamabad repeats core demand ‘end to cross-border terrorism’ as mediators race to prevent breakdown
ISLAMABAD: Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on Friday announced that Pakistan’s high-stakes negotiations with Afghanistan had effectively collapsed, saying the Istanbul round had concluded “without agreement” and slipped into an “indefinite phase”, as negotiators failed to bridge deep and longstanding differences between the two sides.
“Right now, as we speak, negotiations are over,” the defence minister said while speaking on a TV channel, confirming that the talks had stalled despite intense mediation efforts by Turkiye and Qatar. Asif said the Afghan Taliban delegation once again arrived in Istanbul “without any programme” and was unwilling to sign a written agreement. “They said they would only respect the verbal agreement, but there is no room to do that.”
He added that although the earlier rounds ended with commitments for follow-up meetings, the latest breakdown reinforced Pakistan’s “lack of faith” in Kabul’s assurances. “If the situation, God forbid, flares up and there are attacks on us from their soil, then we will respond depending on the gravity of the situation,” he warned. The minister clarified that while the current ceasefire technically stands, “the moment there is a violation from their side, we will respond befittingly”.
Asif also suggested the Afghan side may have floated “unacceptable demands” as an escape route because “they knew they would be unsuccessful” and hoped to shift blame by accusing Pakistan of rejecting their proposals. Pakistan, he reiterated, has one primary demand: a complete halt to attacks from Afghan soil.
Istanbul talks “deadlocked”
Earlier, senior security sources confirmed the negotiations had hit an impasse. “The talks in Istanbul are deadlocked,” one official said. The third round had begun on Thursday and was scheduled for two days.
Pakistan’s delegation, led by ISI Director General Lt Gen Asim Malik, included senior military, intelligence and Foreign Office officials. The Afghan Taliban side was headed by Abdul Haq Waseq, chief of the General Directorate of Intelligence (GDI), and included Suhail Shaheen, Anas Haqqani and Deputy Interior Minister Rehmatullah Najib.
Sources said the Pakistani delegation left for the airport after the breakdown, and there was no direct meeting on Friday. Delegations had met face-to-face the previous day in the presence of Qatari and Turkish mediators.
Some senior Pakistani officials, however, were reported to have stayed behind for possible back-channel engagement in an attempt to break the deadlock.
Pakistan’s evidence-based case
Foreign Office Spokesman Tahir Hussain Andrabi told reporters that the Pakistani team had presented its case “in a comprehensive and evidence-based manner.”
“The Pakistan delegation has handed over its evidence-based, justified, and logical demands to the mediators with a singular aim to put an end to cross-border terrorism,” he said. Mediators were now discussing the demands “point by point” with the Afghan delegation.
Afghan negotiators, meanwhile, claimed their own proposals were “logical and easily achievable” for Pakistan while describing Islamabad’s demands as “unrealistic and aggressive”. A source familiar with the discussions said the Afghan side conveyed that “it is up to Pakistan’s own calculations to deal with the situation.”
A source in Istanbul described the mood at the Conrad Hotel, where the talks were held, as “not positive.”
Government warns Kabul must deliver
Information Minister Ata Tarar said the “onus lies on Afghanistan to fulfil its long-standing international, regional and bilateral pledges regarding control of terrorism—in which so far they have failed.”
“Pakistan shall continue to exercise all options necessary to safeguard the security of its people and its sovereignty,” he said, echoing Andrabi’s earlier warning: “In any eventuality, we will protect the lives of our people and make sure our civilians, military forces and law enforcement agencies on the border are not killed by attacks emanating from Afghanistan.”
Weeks of tension, repeated clashes
The talks follow weeks of shuttle diplomacy triggered by deadly border clashes that plunged bilateral ties to their lowest point since the Taliban takeover of Kabul in 2021.
Hostilities began when an attack was launched on Pakistan from Afghan soil on the night of October 11, after the Taliban accused Islamabad of airstrikes—an allegation Pakistan neither confirmed nor denied. Islamabad has repeatedly demanded that the Taliban prevent terror groups from operating from Afghan territory. The Taliban reject this allegation.
Multiple exchanges of fire took place between October 11 and 15, and Pakistani strikes targeted Gul Bahadur group camps in Afghanistan. A ceasefire was agreed on October 15.
The first round of talks in Doha produced that fragile ceasefire. A second round, also in Doha, yielded only a general commitment to develop a verification mechanism and reconvene in Istanbul.
The third round, launched Wednesday under joint mediation by Turkiye and Qatar, was expected to finalise the modalities of that monitoring system. The talks survived a brief cross-border exchange of fire on Thursday at the Chaman–Spin Boldak crossing that killed two civilians, including a woman, on the Pakistani side.
But by Friday evening, the process had collapsed once again—leaving the ceasefire intact but the political track hanging in uncertainty.
