Defence Minister Khawaja Asif’s declaration that Pakistan has entered a ‘state of war’ following Tuesday’s suicide attack in Islamabad is pretty much telling of the mood within the state regarding the severity of the threat and the frustration building within the state. His warning that Pakistan may carry out strikes inside Afghanistan, and his criticism of the Afghan Taliban regime for harbouring militants, are sending one message: Pakistan’s patience is running out. The minister’s rejection of Kabul’s perfunctory condemnations, which he said could "not be taken as proof of sincerity”, is also a reflection of the extent to which Islamabad views the Taliban government as complicit in the violence ravaging Pakistani soil. Let’s face it: these are not ordinary times. The recent attacks, including the assault on Cadet College Wana and the suicide bombing in the federal capital, were not isolated incidents. Both were coordinated, brutal reminders of TTP resurgence. While Pakistan’s armed forces swiftly eliminated all terrorists involved in the Wana attack – killing four militants and one suicide bomber and ensuring no students or teachers were harmed – the brazenness of such acts has shaken public confidence.
Since border tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan escalated last month, the two sides have held at least three rounds of talks in Doha and Istanbul. Yet, even as diplomats met, Pakistan witnessed more than 60 terrorist attacks. The failure of these talks has coincided with a shift in the TTP’s tactics and intensity, with suicide bombings in major cities and coordinated assaults on security installations. It is clear that the militants remain emboldened and that Afghanistan continues to provide them safe haven. Under such circumstances, Pakistan’s options are limited. Kinetic action – cross-border strikes or intensified counterterrorism operations – is one route. The other is economic pressure. The Afghan Taliban appear to be bracing for both. On Wednesday, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, Afghanistan’s deputy prime minister for economic affairs, urged Afghan traders to end reliance on Pakistan for imports and exports within three months. In an unmistakably defiant tone, he said trade through Pakistan has not only "harmed" Afghanistan’s merchants but "also caused problems for markets and the general public". He warned that traders who continue to rely on Pakistani routes would do so at their own risk. It is clear then that Kabul anticipates an economic and diplomatic backlash from Islamabad – and may already be preparing its population for it.
Meanwhile, on the domestic front, the PTI government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa convened an Aman Jirga on Wednesday, where Chief Minister Sohail Afridi criticised what he said are ‘top-down decisions’ on counterterrorism. To be fair, he is right that policies made ‘behind closed doors’ and ‘imposed’ on the province have yielded limited success. In this sense at least his call for a participatory and long-term anti-terrorism strategy to eradicate the menace once and for all deserves serious consideration. KP has borne the brunt of this war for two decades and its voice must be part of the national security conversation. That said, unity of purpose is critical. While KP’s government should communicate its concerns to the centre, it must also recognise that foreign policy and cross-border action remain the federal government’s prerogative. At a moment when Pakistan faces a clear and present danger from across the border, political divisions and provincial grandstanding will only weaken the national front. Pakistan has been here before – grieving, angry, determined – but this time, the stakes are higher and the enemy more entrenched. If this truly is a ‘state of war’, it demands not just military resolve but political coherence and strategic clarity. The TTP and its backers in Afghanistan cannot be allowed to drag the country back into the shadows of fear and bloodshed.
