ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – Defense Minister Khawaja Asif has warned Kabul that Pakistan will not carry out any clandestine [terrorist] operation in Afghanistan; “if we do so, we will do it openly.”
Speaking on a private TV channel’s programme on Tuesday night, the defense minister was referring to recent terrorist activities in Pakistan carried out by Afghan nationals.
Khawaja Asif said that Pakistan’s friends want peace in the region because it benefits them as well, and for that, they will intervene very soon.
He warned the Taliban regime that if Pakistan carried out an operation inside Afghanistan, it would do so openly and clearly.
He said that the Afghan Taliban would end up isolated, which would ultimately lead to their downfall. “When the factory of terrorism is shut down, opportunities for earning a lawful livelihood will emerge. The Taliban are a group of self-interested people; taking their words seriously or trusting them is useless. We have no expectation of anything good from the Afghan Taliban. There is no greater foolishness than trusting them.”
Defense Minister Asif said that Pakistan’s forces are highly disciplined, whereas the Taliban have no code of conduct. “In which religion or society of the world is it acceptable to live on someone’s land and commit bloodshed there? Which Shariah do the Taliban follow? What Shariah are they talking about?”
The minister said, “We want peace in the region; if there is peace, everyone will benefit. If Afghanistan wants to choose an alternative route for trade, it may do so. If Afghanistan wants to maintain relations with India, it is free to do that as well.”