Pakistan, Afghanistan talks in Istanbul fail to yield breakthrough on border tensions

ISTANBUL, Türkiye  (MNTV) — The latest round of talks between Pakistan and Afghanistan, held in Istanbul and mediated by Türkiye and Qatar, has ended without a breakthrough.

Both sides failed to reach any workable solution on cross-border violence or terrorism, despite four days of intensive discussions aimed at building a roadmap for lasting peace along their volatile frontier.

Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar confirmed the failure early Wednesday, saying Islamabad had made “fervent efforts” to secure credible action from the Taliban-led Afghan government against militant groups using Afghan soil to target Pakistan.

“The dialogue failed to bring about any workable solution,” Tarar said. “Pakistan will continue to take all possible measures necessary to protect its people from the menace of terrorism.”

The Istanbul dialogue followed weeks of fighting along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border and Pakistani airstrikes on suspected Gul Bahadur group camps inside Afghan territory. Those hostilities had been temporarily halted by a ceasefire brokered in Doha earlier this month, where both sides agreed to reconvene in Türkiye for follow-up technical talks.

According to officials present at the Istanbul meetings, who were not authorized to speak publicly, the discussions focused narrowly on mechanisms to monitor and prevent cross-border attacks.

Unlike the Doha talks, which involved ministers and resulted in a temporary truce, the Istanbul round was described as “technical,” involving intelligence and security officials tasked with drafting a mechanism to be approved later by political leadership.

Pakistan’s delegation was led by Lt. Gen. Shahab Aslam of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), joined by a brigadier, a military operations officer, and two aides.

Afghanistan’s side was headed by Deputy Interior Minister Mawlawi Rahmatullah Najeeb, accompanied by senior figures including Anas Haqqani, Suhail Shaheen, and Deputy Defense Minister Noorur Rahman Nusrat.

Turkish intelligence chief İbrahim Kalın hosted the talks, while Qatar’s representatives served as co-mediators, acting as guarantors of the earlier Doha ceasefire.

Competing definitions of sovereignty

The talks quickly revealed deep divisions over the meaning of sovereignty. Islamabad demanded verifiable assurances that Afghan soil would not be used by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Baloch insurgent groups it accuses India of backing. Kabul, in turn, demanded an end to drone strikes and airspace violations it attributes to Pakistan.

“Both sides wanted written guarantees from the other and neither was ready to give them,” said a diplomatic source familiar with the negotiations.

The Afghan team argued that the militants attacking Pakistan were Pakistani nationals and therefore outside Kabul’s control.

“We cannot call your citizens into Afghanistan to control them,” one Afghan participant reportedly said. Pakistan rejected this reasoning and refused an Afghan offer to facilitate direct talks with the TTP.

Islamabad also dismissed Kabul’s demand that Pakistan prevent U.S. drones—some operating from Qatar—from entering Afghan airspace, calling it unrealistic.

“Blame game and ruses”

Pakistan’s information minister accused the Afghan Taliban of evading responsibility. “Instead of accepting any responsibility, the Afghan Taliban resorted to blame game, deflection and ruses,” Tarar said.

“The dialogue thus failed to bring about any workable solution.”

He said Pakistan had provided “sufficient and irrefutable evidence” of terrorist networks operating from Afghan soil, which was acknowledged by both the Afghan side and mediators, but Kabul gave no assurances or written commitments.

Defence Minister Khawaja Asif went further, alleging that the Afghan delegation “backpedaled” several times after contacting Kabul during the talks. “Whenever we got close to an agreement, they called Kabul and withdrew,” Asif told Geo News.

“I believe the negotiations were sabotaged. The people in Kabul pulling the strings are being controlled by Delhi.”

Afghan officials also described the talks as “inconclusive” and accused the Pakistani delegation of “improper conduct” and making “demands unacceptable to Afghanistan.”

Afghan officials also expressed frustration at what they saw as Islamabad’s refusal to recognize Afghan sovereignty.

Sources close to the Afghan side said the delegations came close to agreement “four or five times” but fresh instructions from Kabul each time scuttled progress.

“Most points were done,” one source said, “but new items appeared late that were not acceptable.”

Türkiye and Qatar played key roles in salvaging the process after it briefly collapsed. Turkish intelligence officials pressed both sides to resume dialogue after tensions flared on day three. Talks eventually continued late into the night but produced no signed agreement.

A senior Turkish official said the mediators remain optimistic. “We remain positive that both sides can retrieve this process,” the official said.

“The ceasefire is fragile but alive. A short annex on verification could unlock a political round.”

Pakistan’s concerns

Islamabad has blamed Kabul for harboring the TTP and other groups responsible for attacks inside Pakistan. Officials say nearly 1,800 Pakistani personnel have been killed in such attacks since the Taliban takeover of Kabul in August 2021, including around 460 deaths this year.

Tarar said Pakistan had “immensely sacrificed” for peace in Afghanistan and continued to seek regional stability. But he warned that “Pakistan’s patience has run its course” after years of unreciprocated engagement.

He added that Pakistan was grateful to Türkiye, Qatar, and “other friendly states” for their efforts to secure a peaceful resolution. “The security of our people is of paramount importance,” he said. “We will continue to take all possible measures to protect them from terrorism and to decimate the terrorists, their sanctuaries, abetters, and supporters.”

Analysts say the Istanbul impasse highlights the complexity of managing a border where militants, smugglers, and rival factions often overlap. Both countries accuse each other of undermining sovereignty while seeking external leverage.

“The talks collapsed not for lack of diplomacy but because each side’s definition of sovereignty cancels out the other’s,” said an expert. “For Pakistan, sovereignty means preventing your territory from being used to attack your neighbor. For Afghanistan, it means preventing any foreign interference, including airstrikes or drones.”

Despite the breakdown, diplomats say the Istanbul dialogue kept communication alive. Both sides remained in the room for more than four days—an achievement in itself after years of distrust.

Mediators are now exploring the possibility of a short, follow-up session to finalize a draft “verification annex” that could form the basis of a future political-level meeting, possibly in Doha.

The Doha ceasefire still technically holds, though border incidents continue. Crossings at Spin Boldak and Torkham remain tense, and trade between the two countries has slowed sharply.

For now, both capitals appear to be recalibrating.

Pakistani officials say no agreement will be acceptable without verifiable guarantees that Afghan soil will not be used for terrorism. Afghan officials insist they will not sign anything implying control over the TTP or concessions on airspace.