The recent failure in negotiations between Pakistan and Afghanistan to strengthen the ceasefire has led to increased international interest in the stability of the common border between the two countries. According to Geo TV, after several failed meetings, the lack of diplomatic progress shows the difficulties in reaching a long-term solution, while the escalation of violence is fueling anxiety inside and outside the region. The tension has prompted the Pakistani government to consider making immediate adjustments to its defense strategy, especially after the attacks that occurred in the heart of Islamabad and neighboring areas.
Geo TV reported that the high alert declared by the Pakistani executive authority comes in response to the suicide attack that killed twelve people in Islamabad and the attempted attack on a university campus in South Waziristan. Both events have revived the internal debate about the possibility of military intervention in Afghan territory, given what the authorities consider continued leniency on the part of the Taliban government towards armed groups operating from Afghanistan. Defense Minister Khawaja Asif’s public statements, broadcast by Geo TV, made clear the official position: “Pakistan is at war,” the official said on the social media network.
In his television interventions, also recorded by Geo TV, Asif stated that the administration is keeping the door open to the possibility of carrying out direct operations outside its borders if new attacks are discovered or if Afghan support for armed groups responsible for attacks on Pakistani soil is confirmed. The minister noted that although Pakistan has no intention of escalating the conflict unilaterally, any hostile action “will not go unanswered.” This position was supported by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who referred to complaints against India due to its alleged links to armed groups present in Afghanistan, accusations that were repeated by the authorities in Islamabad on previous occasions.
As Geo TV explained, Khyber Bastungwa Province, which borders Afghanistan, has focused a large part of recent military operations. In that region, the Pakistani army announced the killing of at least twenty members suspected of belonging to terrorist organizations, as part of an intensive deployment to stop the infiltration of insurgents. These measures are part of the development of the national security strategy, expanding surveillance over rural and urban areas vulnerable to the actions of armed cells.
The issue of international cooperation was addressed by the Pakistani President himself and representatives of the armed forces, who, in statements to Geo TV, called for more effective bilateral coordination with Afghanistan to dismantle the networks responsible for the attacks. As reported by the media, Islamabad insists that the Taliban government’s lack of concrete action facilitates the use of Afghan territory as an operating base for planning and carrying out attacks, demanding decisive and tangible responses that have not been achieved so far.
The foiled attempt to attack the military campus in South Waziristan, according to information gathered by Geo TV, ended in the death of two people and fueled the perception of an ongoing threat in the region. As a result of this incident and the attack in the capital, the government increased control measures and chose to reinforce the military presence in the most vulnerable areas, while maintaining the assumption that new incursions would be possible if the opposition continued through diplomatic channels.
At the same time, the same media reported that contacts between Islamabad and Kabul were insufficient to achieve any kind of stable commitment to cease continuing hostilities. After an armed clash the previous month, the two sides held up to three rounds of negotiations to try to prolong the truce between the two armies, but none of the meetings made much progress.
The panorama of cross-border violence has led to a review of defense protocols, with the executive aiming to respond proportionately to every bit of aggression and maintain constant surveillance, both in urban centers and in rural areas traditionally used by insurgents. Geo TV noted that the lack of progress in the diplomatic sphere increases uncertainty over borders and reinforces shared territory as a potential scenario for future armed confrontations.
Various international voices are closely monitoring the development of events, according to Geo TV, aware that the military escalation between Pakistan and Afghanistan may have repercussions on regional stability. The recent attacks, within the Pakistani government itself, have helped reaffirm the urgent need to design dynamic and immediate responses to any sign of new incursions or violence emanating from abroad.
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