The honeymoon period between Pakistan and Afghanistan’s President Ashraf Ghani seems to be over. After being elected into office last year, Ghani attempted to move closer to Pakistan. However, the recently reported death of Mullah Omar and the increased Taliban attacks in Afghanistan seem to have pushed him into a corner domestically. On Monday, President Ghani launched a blistering attack against Islamabad and accused it of not doing enough to eliminate Taliban bases in the country. While the allegations have been rejected by the Pakistan Foreign Office, which has pointed to the peace talks being organised by Pakistani authorities as an example, Ghani has rejected even the sincerity of those talks. Talking to journalists after an attack on the Kabul airport, Ghani has given Pakistan notice over the future of the relationship and rejected our role in talks with the Taliban. Ghani has also said that he hopes for peace but that war against Afghanistan has been declared from inside Pakistan, and that Pakistan still harbours hostility towards Afghanistan. This is rather a tragic turn of events since Ghani was thought to have led his country towards better ties with Pakistan after former Afghan president Karzai spent the last few months of his presidency blaming Pakistan for all that is possibly wrong in his country.
Now, it appears Afghan intelligence have reports confirming the involvement of Pakistani authorities in the recent spate of attacks. The fact is that much like Pakistan and India blaming each other of cross-border terrorism, there is a need to make any such claims public – along with strong evidence – to allow for serious change to take place. As it stands, Ghani’s statements appear more like the mudslinging that is most common in the region. Only a day before his outburst, Ghani had spoken to both Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Army Chief General Raheel Sharif over the situation. While our previous policies may have made such
mistrust justified, the fact is that there have been efforts to break away from the old days on the Pakistani side. Ghani may have rhetoric on his side, but it is his government that is looking for talks with the Taliban. If Afghanistan wants to talk to the Afghan Taliban, would it not be counterproductive for Pakistan to target the same group in its own territory? An Afghan delegation is due in Islamabad on Thursday with a list of actions that Kabul wants taken immediately. This harks back to when after the Dec 16 APS Peshawar attack, Army Chief General Raheel Sharif went to Kabul to ask for action against the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif insisted on Tuesday that Pakistan was committed to peace with both India and Afghanistan. With Afghanistan demanding action against Taliban bases in Pakistan, Pakistan may just have to show something on the ground to make the wish of regional peace come true.