Afghanistan’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Amir Khan Muttaqi, said the recent failure of talks between Kabul and Islamabad was primarily due to “unreasonable demands” made by the Pakistani delegation.

Speaking at the graduation ceremony of the Foreign Ministry’s Diplomacy Institute, Muttaqi emphasized that while Afghanistan seeks friendly and cooperative relations with Pakistan, any violation of its territorial integrity would be met with a firm response.

“The Pakistani representatives made demands during negotiations that were neither practical nor reasonable,” Muttaqi said. “One of their demands was: ‘Give us a guarantee that there will be no more security incidents in Pakistan.’”

Muttaqi reiterated that the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan aims to engage Pakistan on the basis of mutual respect and benefit, but cautioned that attempts to implement projects against Afghanistan’s sovereignty would be firmly resisted. “Our efforts are aimed at bringing goodness to them. A Muslim should bring benefit to another Muslim. But if certain circles implement such projects, Afghanistan also has the right to defend itself, and it will,” he added.

The Foreign Minister also highlighted that Pakistan’s security challenges are long-standing. “Pakistan’s problems are not new. The TTP has been active in Pakistan for the past 25 years. The Pakistani government itself has reported that 70 to 80 thousand of their people were killed during the past two decades of conflict,” he said.

Muttaqi further accused Pakistan of using its power to pressure Afghanistan, including through trade route closures and manipulating refugee-related issues.

The remarks come amid ongoing regional tensions and reflect the Islamic Emirate’s insistence on defending Afghanistan’s sovereignty while maintaining diplomatic engagement with neighboring countries. (ILKHA)