Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has warned Afghanistan\u2019s Taliban rulers that Islamabad will strike terrorist hideouts inside the neighbouring country if the latter were unable to rein in anti-Pakistan militants.
\nThe minister made the remarks in an inclusive interview with Voice of America published on Wednesday. Asif\u2019s comments come on the back of his earlier statement that the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) were using Afghan soil for carrying out attacks in Pakistan.
\nThe defence minister said that in his visit to Afghanistan in late-February, he reminded the Taliban administration to live up to their cross-border security commitments forbidding terrorists from using Afghan soil to plan and conduct attacks on Pakistan or Islamabad will take action.
\n\u201cWe have communicated to Kabul during our last visit that please, as our neighbours and brothers, whatever is emanating from Afghan soil is your responsibility,\u201d he said.
\n\u201cIf that is not done, at some point we\u2019ll have to [\u2026] resort to some measures, which will definitely \u2014 wherever [terrorists] are, their sanctuaries on Afghan soil \u2014 we\u2019ll have to hit them,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019ll have to hit them because we cannot tolerate this situation for long.\u201d
\nAsif went on to say that the Afghans responded to this \u201creally well\u201d.
\n\u201cThey responded well, really well. Perhaps for them to disentangle the TTP from this stage \u2014 of course they want to disentangle, this is my impression [that] they want to disentangle \u2014 but this disentanglement, perhaps, will take time.
\n\u201cBut they are doing well and we wish them well and we don\u2019t want to get into a situation where this situation with the [TTP] escalates and we do something that is not to the liking of our neighbours and brothers in Kabul.\u201d
\nDuring the interview, Asif was asked whether he believed the Taliban\u2019s claim that the TTP were not using Afghan soil to carry out attacks in Pakistan.
\nHe responded by saying, \u201cThey still operate from their soil.\u201d
\nAsif was also asked about his assertion that the TTP were using weapons left behind by the US forces in Afghanistan. \u201cHave you provided any evidence of that to the Americans?\u201d the interviewer asked.
\n\u201cIt can be seen all over the place. On the streets of Kabul, I saw it myself,\u201d the minister responded. He said that the TTP were using \u201clight weapons, assault rifles, ammunition, night vision goggles and sniper rifles\u201d which were left behind by US troops.
\nWhen asked whether this point had been raised with the Americans, Asif said: \u201cWhat is the use of talking to Washington? They left that sort of hardware on foreign soil because they couldn\u2019t carry it.\u201d
\nThe interviewer pointed out that the US State Department\u2019s response to Pakistan\u2019s assertion was that they did not have \u201can independent assessment\u201d. She also asked whether Islamabad needed the help of the US in fighting terrorism in Pakistan.
\n\u201cI do not see any logic in that,\u201d the minister said. \u201cMy personal view is that we can take care of this [\u2026] menace ourselves,\u201d Asif said, giving the examples of Zarb-i-Azb and Raddul Fassad.
\nHe also termed the resurgence in terrorism in the country to be a \u201cgrave mistake\u201d by the previous PTI government.
\nSeparately, while speaking on the floor of the National Assembly on Thursday, Asif said that the House would be given an in-camera briefing tomorrow (Friday) on the country\u2019s security situation.
\nHe said that the military leadership would brief parliament regarding the state\u2019s policy on countering militancy, stating that the security establishment was cognisant of the prevailing situation.
\nPrime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said the same and assured that a \u201chealthy interaction\u201d would take place tomorrow in which legitimate concerns raised during the session would be answered.
\nLast week, the top civil and military leadership reaffirmed their commitment to thwart terrorism threats and vowed to relaunch the National Action Plan (NAP) within 15 days to crush militants reportedly coming in from Afghanistan.
\nThe decisions were made at the National Security Committee (NSC) meeting, which the government said was in continuation of a previous meeting convened after a militant attack inside Peshawar\u2019s police headquarters in January, in which 86 people, mostly police officials, were martyred.
\nPolitical parties, including allies of the federal government, however, have expressed their concerns over the possible military offensive against militants, with most saying that those who brought back the militants should be brought to justice before launching an offensive against militants.
\nAddressing the NA session today, MNA Ali Wazir said that the country\u2019s current policy regarding militancy needed to be reviewed.
\n\u201cI appeal to the incumbent government that those responsible for the rise in terrorism [\u2026] those who brought these militants into Pakistan should be punished,\u201d he said.
\n\u201cUntil and unless these people are punished, we won\u2019t allow the new operation to commence,\u201d he added.
\nAgreeing with Wazir, MNA Mohsin Dawar said that operations were cinducted in the past but none of them were successful in eliminating terrorism.
\n\u201cThis is because you are confused. There is no clarity in your policy. You send mixed signals,\u201d he asserted.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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