By Agha Iqrar Haroon
Afghanistan has approached Russia, requesting the Kremlin to facilitate fresh dialogue with Pakistan after several countries, including Qatar, Turkey and Saudi Arabia, reportedly did not respond to Kabul’s requests to persuade Islamabad to resume peace talks.
Diplomatic sources said Kabul is now seeking Moscow’s assistance to continue efforts to ease tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan through diplomatic engagement. The latest diplomatic initiative comes after Pakistan carried out strikes on terrorist camps inside Afghanistan. Following the operation, Russia called on both Pakistan and Afghanistan to halt armed confrontation and resolve their differences through political and diplomatic means.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, Moscow urged both sides to avoid further escalation, noting that the continuing conflict primarily affects civilian populations. Russia’s appeal comes despite its own prolonged war with Ukraine, which has continued since 2022 with little prospect of successful negotiations as both Moscow and Kyiv continue to accuse each other of aggression. It may be mentioned that Russia is the only country that has recognized terrorist regime of Afghan Taliban and has recently signed Military Cooperation contract with Afghanistan.
Pakistan has increasingly gained international support for its position that terrorist groups operating from Afghan territory continue to launch attacks inside Pakistan. Islamabad has consistently maintained that the Afghan Taliban have failed to prevent terrorist from using Afghan soil for cross-border terrorism.
The United States has publicly backed Pakistan’s right to defend itself against terrorist attacks. The U.S. State Department said Washington “supports Pakistan’s right to defend itself against terrorist attacks,” adding that “the Pakistani people have suffered greatly at the hands of terrorists.” The statement followed months of heightened tensions between the neighboring countries. Pakistan and Afghanistan fought their worst border confrontation in years in February. Later that week, Afghanistan’s Taliban authorities claimed they had launched airstrikes into Pakistani territory. Islamabad, however, said its security forces intercepted and shot down four rudimentary drones in Balochistan province.
Pakistan remains a major non-NATO ally of the United States, and bilateral relations have reportedly improved since President Donald Trump returned to the White House. Islamabad has also played a mediating role in efforts related to the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran. Washington, meanwhile, continues to designate the Afghan Taliban as a terrorist group.
International support for Pakistan’s security position has also been reflected by other governments. British officials, including Parliamentary Under-Secretary for the Middle East and Afghanistan Hamish Falconer, have stated that under international law Pakistan is entitled to protect its citizens and respond to threats originating from across the Afghan border.
Pakistan has also informed the United Nations Security Council that it will exercise its right to self-defense to dismantle terrorist infrastructure, particularly Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), operating from neighboring Afghan territory.
While international forums continue to debate the broader application of the right to self-defense in counterterrorism operations, Pakistan has maintained that its actions are aimed at protecting its citizens from cross-border terrorism and ensuring national security. Recent voting patterns at the United Nations also reflected differing international positions on counterterrorism issues, with the United States and Israel opposing the ninth review of the UN Global Counterterrorism Strategy, while Pakistan voted in favor of the framework.
