After holding peace talks in Doha on Sunday, Afghanistan and Pakistan announced they had agreed to an immediate ceasefire, following a week of fierce border clashes, which marked the worst violence between the two South Asian neighbours since the Taliban took control of Kabul in 2021.
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According to Reuters, the ceasefire “has been finalised”, Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif posted on X on Sunday, saying both sides would meet again on October 25 in Istanbul to discuss “detailed matters”.
Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said in a statement that the parties agreed on a complete and meaningful ceasefire.
Qatar’s foreign ministry, which mediated Saturday’s talks along with Turkey, said the follow-up meetings were meant “to ensure the sustainability of the ceasefire and verify its implementation reliably and sustainably”.
Asif and his Afghan counterpart, Mullah Muhammad Yaqoob, led the discussions as Pakistan and Afghanistan sought a path forward following the clashes that killed dozens and wounded hundreds, according to statements from both nations.
The conflict, which included ground clashes and Pakistani airstrikes across the contested 2,600-km frontier, was triggered by a demand from Islamabad that Kabul curb militant activity. Pakistan stated that these militants, who had intensified attacks inside Pakistan, were operating from safe havens in Afghanistan.
The Taliban denies giving haven to militants to attack Pakistan and accuses the Pakistani military of spreading misinformation about Afghanistan and sheltering Islamic State-linked militants to undermine its stability and sovereignty. Islamabad denies the accusations.
Militants have been waging a war for years against the Pakistani state in a bid to overthrow the government and replace it with their strict brand of Islamic governance.
On Friday, a suicide attack near the border killed seven Pakistani soldiers and wounded 13, security officials said.
“The Afghan regime must rein in the proxies who have sanctuaries in Afghanistan and are using Afghan soil to perpetrate heinous attacks inside Pakistan,” the Pakistan Army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, said on Saturday, addressing a graduation ceremony of cadets.
The Taliban spokesperson said that at the Doha talks, “It was decided that neither country will take hostile actions against the other, and support will not be provided to groups operating against the government of Pakistan.”
In a follow-up post on X, he said it reflected the Taliban’s longstanding position that Afghanistan’s territory will not be used against any other country.
The statements made about the agreement do not constitute a joint declaration, he said.
