UNITED NATIONS: Terrorism emanating from Afghanistan remains the “gravest threat” to Pakistan’s national security, a senior Pakistani diplomat told the UN Security Council, urging the Taliban authorities to fulfill their international counterterrorism obligations.
Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the UN, highlighted that the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), with nearly 6,000 fighters, is the largest UN-designated terrorist group on Afghan soil.
He noted that Pakistan had successfully thwarted multiple infiltration attempts by TTP and Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) militants from across the border. Significant caches of advanced weaponry, mostly left behind by departing U.S. forces, were also seized.
“These efforts come at a heavy price,” he said, recalling the martyrdom of 12 Pakistani soldiers earlier this month in a single border incident. “This situation is intolerable.”
The envoy said that terrorist outfits, including ISIL-K/Da’esh, Al-Qaeda, TTP, BLA, and its Majeed Brigade, continue to operate from Afghan sanctuaries, with more than 60 camps functioning as hubs for infiltration and attacks.
“We have credible evidence of collaboration through joint training, illicit weapons trade, refuge to terrorists, and coordinated attacks,” he added.
Ambassador Ahmad called for urgent action on a China-Pakistan proposal in the UN’s 1267 Sanctions Committee to designate the BLA and Majeed Brigade as terrorist organizations, pointing out that the United States has already listed them.
He emphasized that sanctions on the Taliban must not “fall prey to political considerations” and stressed the importance of travel-ban exemptions for meaningful engagement.
Recalling recent quadrilateral talks between Pakistan, China, Iran, and Russia in Dushanbe, he reiterated the need for “result-oriented engagement” with Afghanistan’s interim authorities. “Isolation and disengagement serves no one’s interest,” he stressed.
He also criticized ongoing Taliban restrictions on Afghan women and girls, calling them inconsistent with Islamic traditions.
The envoy noted Pakistan’s dignified repatriation of Afghan refugees, as well as its liberal visa regime allowing Afghans legal entry for education, medical care, family, and business purposes.
He urged the international community to share the burden equitably, including delayed commitments on third-country resettlements.
“No country desires peace and stability in Afghanistan more than Pakistan,” he said. “And no country has suffered more from decades of Afghan conflict. We remain committed to a peaceful, prosperous Afghanistan.”
Earlier, UN Special Representative Roza Otunbayeva warned that Afghanistan faces a “perfect storm” of overlapping crises. She pointed to severe humanitarian, economic, and human rights challenges since 2021, stressing that Taliban restrictions on women and girls could cost the country a generation.
