The Blame Game: Kabul, Islamabad point fingers after Taliban attacks

World Today

Talks with the Taliban are a possibility. That’s according to Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, who said he would consider negotiations, but not with those who kill civilians.

Recent attacks have killed more than 130 across the country, and Kabul says responsibility at least partially lies with Islamabad.

CGTN’s Chuck Tinte has more.

Attacks by the Taliban and an ISIL-linked militant group have claimed nearly 200 lives in Afghanistan this year, and the Afghan president is quick to point the finger of blame.

“We are waiting for practical steps by Pakistan, not lip service, processes that are just words on paper,” the president said. “The Afghan nation appeals for actions. Clear and precise actions.”

The government in Islamabad denies it is harboring, or otherwise helping, terrorists.

“We reject any allegations of support to the Haqqani Network or the Taliban, and of allowing them to use our soil,” according to Mohammad Faisal, a spokesperson for Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry. “Pakistan has been taking actions against all terrorists groups in its territory. Blaming Pakistan for security lapses inside Afghanistan is unfair.”

The accusations between the two countries are not at all surprising. The two regularly accuse each other of failing to counter militant operations along their border.

Afghanistan maintains its allegations have substance, citing captured militants who claimed there were training camps at Islamic seminaries in the Pakistani border town of Chaman. The United States has also accused Islamabad of harboring terrorists, and last month halted military aid.

Despite the allegations, Pakistan said both sides are victims of terrorism, while calling for joint efforts to fight a common threat.

The Afghan public, meanwhile, is demanding that Ghani’s Western-backed government improve security.