Afghanistan must act against terror groups, not test Pakistan’s patience: FO

Pakistan on Thursday reiterated its call for the Afghan authorities to take action against the groups or individuals involved in terror activities in Pakistan and cautioned that they should not test the patience of the Pakistani people.

“We urge Afghan authorities to take Pakistan’s repeated requests seriously and ensure that action is taken against these terror groups. The patience of Pakistani people must not be tested with respect to the terror threat we continue to face from entities and individuals in Afghanistan,” Foreign Office spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said at her weekly press briefing.

She told the media that not only Pakistan but also the Moscow Format and Neighboring Countries Format states had also called it the responsibility of Afghan authorities to act against such groups and ensure that their soil was not used against Pakistan or any other neighboring country.

The spokesperson rejected as “speculation” and “motivated by agenda” a news report on any joint security mechanism between Pakistan and China for the security of Chinese nationals in Pakistan, and urged the media to ascertain the motives behind such stories as being the iron brothers and strategic partners, both Pakistan and China had robust dialogue and cooperation based on mutual cooperation and respect for each other’s sovereignty.

She said both countries had the resolve and capabilities to foil any attempt to harm their bilateral relations.

Highlighting the diplomatic activities took place during the last week, the spokesperson mentioned Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s participation in the World Leaders’ Climate Action Summit of the 29th Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, held from 11th to 22nd November in Baku where he addressed the World Leaders’ Climate Action Summit and high-level sideline events of the summit, including the Climate Finance Roundtable hosted by Pakistan and the Glaciers 2025: Action for Glaciers hosted by Tajikistan.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar also represented Pakistan at the high-level event, delivering an early warning for all and addressing extreme heat besides highlighting the importance of early warning systems for climate-induced hazards.

She also mentioned the prime minister’s meetings with the presidents of Azerbaijan, Turkiye, United Arab Emirates and Nepal and the prime ministers of the United Kingdom, Czech Republic, and Denmark, the Chinese Vice Premier, and the Chief Adviser of the Interim Government of Bangladesh.

The spokesperson apprised the media of the prime minister’s participation in the Extraordinary Arab Islamic Summit on the situation in the Middle East, held in Riyadh where Pakistan condemned the Gaza genocide, Israeli aggression against Palestine and Lebanon, and the recent strikes on Iran.

The spokesperson said that Pakistan welcomed the resolution adopted by the Arab-Islamic Summit in which the leaders endorsed the collective call on the UN Security Council by a group of countries, including Pakistan, to impose an arms embargo on Israel, sanctions, and suspension of Israel’s participation in the UN in view of its illegal actions and threat to international peace and security.

“We urge the international community to heed this call and uphold international law, safeguard human rights, and protect the people of Palestine,” the spokesperson remarked.

She told the media that the Russian President’s Special Envoy on Afghanistan Zamir Kabulov would visit Pakistan on the day and call on Foreign Secretary Amna Baloch and hold detailed discussions with Additional Foreign Secretary Afghanistan and West Asia, Ambassador Ahmed Nasim Warraich. The two sides will review the situation in Afghanistan and discuss the role of neighboring countries in promoting regional peace and stability.

Spokesperson Baloch reiterated Pakistan’s serious concerns about the plight of Kashmiri political prisoners, as a sizable number of these prisoners remain incarcerated outside Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir. Many of them are enduring inhuman conditions in jails, including confinement in overcrowded cells, denial of necessary medical care, and continued detention without due process, she added.

“We urge the Indian authorities to drop fabricated charges against all political prisoners, activists, and human rights defenders and release them immediately. Pakistan will continue to extend political, diplomatic, and moral support to our Kashmiri brothers and sisters for the just and peaceful settlement of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute in accordance with UN Security Council resolutions,” she stated.

The spokesperson announced that Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar will participate in the 15th Sir Bani Yas Forum being held from November 15 to 17 in the UAE where he will engage in high-level dialogue with global leaders and experts addressing critical issues of regional security, economic cooperation, and sustainable development.

He will also underscore Pakistan’s strategic perspective on fostering diplomatic solutions to complex regional challenges and advancing collective prosperity.

To a question, she expressed disappointment over the non-fulfillment of the pledges made in previous COP summits. She said the COP29 was an important forum where the developing countries expressed their disappointment and highlighted the failure of developed nations in fulfilling their commitments.

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