A senior Pakistani official told the UN Security Council that despite promises, the Taliban regime has not taken “decisive” action to stop cross-border terror attacks by the banned TTP that have left hundreds of civilian and military casualties.
“The top priority for the international community, Afghanistan’s neighbours and Afghanistan itself is the eradication of terrorism in and from Afghanistan,” Pakistan’s permanent representative to the UN, Ambassador Munir Akram, said during a discussion on the situation in Afghanistan.
He said Pakistan has repeatedly told senior Taliban leaders to take decisive action to end TTP attacks, disarm its fighters and capture the terror group’s fighters and hand them over to Pakistan.
“Unfortunately, despite the promises, no meaningful action has been taken so far. The TTP’s safe havens remain along the Pakistan border. Cross-border attacks continue, including one by TTP officials that killed several Chinese engineers working on the Das hydroelectric project,” the Pakistan envoy told the 15-nation Security Council.
“The apparent impunity enjoyed by some of these terrorist groups within Afghanistan poses a serious and direct threat to all of Afghanistan’s neighbors and the international community.”
“The Afghan government has been working closely with the Afghan government to ensure that the situation in Afghanistan is brought under control,” said Akram, who is also the head of the Afghan National Security Council.
While welcoming the Taliban’s announcement that they would attend the UN-sponsored conference in Doha, Ambassador Akram stressed the need for both the international community and the Afghan interim government to “be clear about the overall objectives they are aiming for.” “If you don’t know where you are going, you will never get there,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Pakistani envoy said the international community has a duty to help the 23 million Afghans who need emergency assistance and take appropriate measures to strengthen the Afghan economy, including reviving the national banking system and restoring commercial activity.
The Taliban must also take steps to comply with their international obligations, he said, noting that “the world remains concerned” about restrictions imposed on Afghan women and girls. “These are contrary to international law and Islamic teachings,” he said, adding that “the AIG (Afghan Interim Government) is expected to guarantee women and girls’ rights to education, work and other human rights.”
Ambassador Akram said Pakistan shares close ties with Afghanistan in terms of ethnicity, history, faith, language and culture.
“Pakistan has a national mission to promote peace, stability and development in Afghanistan, and we will continue to work at all levels – bilaterally, regionally, internationally and with the United Nations – to achieve these objectives.”
At the start of the discussion, Roza Otunbayeva, Special Representative of the Secretary-General and head of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), said the next Doha conference, the third of its kind, is scheduled to take place in nine days and that the Taliban have indicated they are preparing to attend.
“In Doha, we hope to bring key stakeholders to the table, discuss face-to-face and agree on next steps to strengthen the principles underlying the engagement agreement and reduce the uncertainty facing the Afghan people.” But she cautioned that Doha “has created high expectations that realistically cannot be met in a single meeting.”
There is no substitute for engagement with Afghanistan, but “it cannot be emphasized enough that this type of engagement is not a justification or normalization,” Otunbayeva added.
Although the Taliban have maintained political stability, they continue to impose severe restrictions on women and leave little room for internal dissent.
She stressed the need for political legitimacy at home, adding that despite more than $7 billion in humanitarian aid, “Afghanistan remains mired in deep poverty.”
