by Ahmad Khan 28 December 2022
Afghanistan can never emerge as an accepted nation-state until it fulfills the agreed agenda discussed during the Doha peace deal. In 2020, before America left Afghanistan, it had to sign a deal with the Taliban so as not to push Afghanistan into a state of turmoil. Both parties had to fulfill what was agreed upon to maintain a stable relationship afterward. One of the main points of the deal was that Afghanistan soil would never be used by any other terrorist organization. There are known, banned terrorist outfits that had been flourishing in the country before the US withdrawal. The US put the condition that even if the Taliban came into power, they would not support any banned terrorist organization, including Al-Qaida, ISIS, and TTP. But the Afghan Taliban has never shown any resistance against TTP and al-Qaida. Since the Taliban’s coming to power, terrorists have been conducting their actions with impunity. For the sake of good mutual relations, Pakistan and Afghanistan had to respect each other. Afghan Taliban had to show the world their willingness to respect the deal so that they could ask for recognition from the international community in return. But that is not the case. Neither the terrorist organizations are being controlled nor the internal reforms have taken place to normalize social dynamics. TTP has claimed responsibility for different terrorist attacks in Pakistan in recent months. Whether it’s the cross-border firing in Balochistan or the suicide blast in Islamabad in the past week, TTP has shown that it is raising its head again. And without the aegis of the Afghan Taliban, TTP cannot bluntly carry out its attack against Pakistani authorities.
Historically, too when Tehrik Taliban Pakistan was established, it had close links with Tehrik Taliban Afghanistan. Both outfits had their visions to establish sharia in Afghanistan and Pakistan. With the presence of the US in Afghanistan and the Pakistan Army’s counter-terrorism operations, both outfits were cut to their sizes. But as the US has left the region, and Afghan Taliban have again come to the rule, there is a growing concern in the international community that terrorism will prevail again. Although, the leader of TTP, Noor Wali Mehsud said earlier this month, “ we are fighting Pakistan’s war from within the territory of Pakistan; using Pakistani soil,” in an interview with CNN. But the reality can never be ignored that TTP has close links with TTA. This is a clear violation of the peace agreement between the US and the Taliban. On one side, they ask the international community that they must be accepted as a normal state in the community, while on the other they support the terrorist outfits that threaten not just regional but world peace. Besides this terrorism factor, there are other concerns of the international community as well. The foremost is women’s rights. Recently, the Taliban has banned University education for women. When the women protested, they used water cannons to disperse the protestors. With such rigidity, and support for terrorism, the international community has no reason to accept the Taliban’s government.
Pakistan has played a very central role in bringing peace to Afghanistan. Whether it’s the war on terror to eliminate terrorism from the region, or bringing the Taliban and US to the negotiation table, the struggle of Pakistan can never be ignored. It has proven to be a frontline state when it comes to deciding matters of regional peace and stability. When the Taliban came to power, there came perspectives that Pakistan will recognize the government as soon as possible. But today’s Pakistan is different from what it was in the 1990s. For the country, international norms and democratic values matter the most. It has variously asked the Taliban to adopt a moderate approach in domestic as well as foreign policies. Side by side it kept on urging the international community to respond to the humanitarian crisis in its neighboring country. So, Pakistan also believes that until and unless the Taliban respect the agreed peace treaty, they will not be accepted as a legitimate government of Afghanistan. They have to respect women and give them equal rights. Without the international community, it cannot flourish. For the sake of the survival of Afghans, the Taliban must think of their approach internally as well as externally.