Ceasefire might not hold as Afghan Taliban have become proxy for Delhi: Asif

Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on Wednesday expressed a lack of confidence in the 48-hour ceasefire agreed between Pakistan and Afghanistan, as the latter has become a “proxy of Delhi”.

Today’s fighting was the third major skirmish between Pakistan and Afghanistan within a week, following the incident in Kurram last night and earlier skirmishes that began on Saturday night and continued into Sunday morning at several locations.

Speaking on Geo News programme ‘Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada ke Saath’ on Wednesday night, the defence minister said that the Afghan Taliban are “fighting a proxy war” on behalf of India and stated that they have become a “stooge” for New Delhi.

“I have my doubts that the ceasefire will hold, because the [Afghan] Taliban are being sponsored by Delhi,” he added. “Right now, Kabul is fighting a proxy war for Delhi.”

Asif reaffirmed Pakistan’s readiness and capability to defend itself in the face of further aggression from Kabul.

“We have the capability and we will attack them, God willing, if they escalate or widen the radius of this war,” he said. “There have been deep strikes in Afghanistan and a ceasefire was agreed on after the intervention of friendly countries, but it is fragile. I don’t believe this will last long.”

However, Asif added that in this situation, Pakistan will respond positively to any constructive dialogue, but will not tolerate ceasefire violations or attacks on its territory.

“If they bombard our border areas or attack our posts, then we have to respond in kind,” he explained. “We do not want to fight, but if we are attacked, we have the right to respond.”

The defence minister also said that the situation along the Afghan border was in line with the FO’s communique about a ceasefire, but spoke about disinformation emerging from Afghanistan following the clashes today.

“I endorse the 48-hour ceasefire, but there has been a wave of lies coming from Kabul,” he said. “They are showing videos claiming they have captured a Pakistani tank; we do not have those tanks in our inventory. They probably bought it from some junk dealer.”

When asked about the Pakistan Air Force’s (PAF) role, Asif did not provide specific details but said Pakistan “has the right and the capability to bomb or attack any part of Afghanistan”.

To a question about whether the mutual defence pact with Saudi Arabia could come into play here, the minister said friendly countries will “effectively intervene” but noted that it is speculation at present.

Islamabad has repeatedly called on Kabul to bar terrorist groups from using its territory to attack Pakistan, however, Afghanistan denies the allegations and claims Afghan soil is not used for attacks on neighbouring countries.

The issue of terrorists using Afghan soil against Pakistan has long strained ties between the two countries and the ties seem to have nose-dived with recent increase in hostilities at the border.

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