Turkey’s foreign ministry announced late Thursday that Afghanistan and Pakistan will resume crucial peace talks in Istanbul on November 6 and uphold a vital ceasefire until that date. In a statement, the ministry confirmed that all parties agreed to continue the ceasefire, explaining that officials will examine and decide the implementation modalities during the high-level meeting in Istanbul. Consequently, Turkey and Qatar have been jointly mediating negotiations between the two nations following deadly clashes along their shared border.
Turkey’s Foreign Ministry confirmed officials scheduled a follow-up round of negotiations in Istanbul for the following week, saying that both nations will meet on 6 November to finalize a necessary monitoring mechanism to maintain peace and enforce penalties on any party violating the agreement. Earlier this week, the Turkey- and Qatar-mediated peace talks had temporarily faltered, after Afghan state media blamed the standstill on Pakistan’s unreasonable demands.
Core Disputes and Warnings
The initial ceasefire began on 19 October, implemented immediately following escalating violence where Pakistan launched airstrikes on Afghan territory targeting Pakistani Taliban militants, killing dozens. Specifically, Islamabad accuses Kabul of sheltering militant groups like the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) which reportedly launch regular cross-border attacks from Afghan soil.
Pakistani Defense Minister Khawaja Asif delivered a sharp warning earlier this week, cautioning that any terrorist attack or suicide bombing inside Pakistan would give the perpetrators the bitter taste of such misadventures.
Conversely, Kabul denied these accusations and strongly condemned the strikes as severe violations of Afghanistan’s national sovereignty. On Thursday, Taliban Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani claimed that some Pakistani elements, either consciously or unconsciously, are recklessly playing with fire and war in the region. He emphatically added that while Afghans truly “do not want war,” defending the national territory naturally remains one of Kabul’s highest priorities.
Similarly, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid confirmed the conclusion of the talks, stating that Afghanistan strongly sought friendly relations based upon mutual respect and non-interference with Pakistan. Meanwhile, the Pakistan government has not yet issued an official comment regarding the peace talks’ status.
Although the ceasefire has largely held steady, the persistent border closure continues stranding hundreds of commercial trucks and severely disrupting trade along the 2,600-kilometre frontier.
