Pakistan’s PM claims TTP presence and training camps in Afghanistan

Pakistan’s Caretaker Prime Minister, Anwar ul Haq Kakar, asserted that Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) is within Afghanistan’s borders and maintains training camps.

In a recent interview with TRT, Pakistan’s Caretaker Prime Minister stated, “We do raise such issues with them (Taliban administration); there are training camps over there, on their soil (Afghanistan), which is a point of concern for us.”

He added, however, that Islamabad is still determining if this is all intentional and questioned whether the TTP enjoys the patronage of the Afghan government. He said this situation remains to be seen, and Islamabad wants to maintain its relationship with Afghanistan regarding security operations.

Kakar emphasized that Pakistan carefully analyses the complex situation and aims to formulate its security policy accordingly. He denied any direct involvement of Pakistan in bringing the Taliban back into the political arena, asserting that the United States and its allies recognized the Taliban as a significant player in Afghanistan.

He acknowledged that Pakistan played a role of encouragement before August 2021, viewing the Taliban as an essential player in Afghan society. He noted that negotiating with the interim administration of Kabul had been a global challenge, and Pakistan had participated in the broader diplomatic efforts.

Kakar clarified that Pakistan provided input but has no regrets about its actions. He also noted that leading up to the collapse of the former Afghan government, various powers and international groups were eager to withdraw from Afghanistan.

They should have pursued a political settlement and created an environment for negotiations among Afghan groups, but this did not happen. The rest of the world planned the exit strategy, not Pakistan, Kakar emphasized.

Meanwhile, Kakar stressed that Pakistan has lost approximately 90,000 people to terrorism but remains committed to combating it.

In contrast, the Taliban administration has consistently denied TTP’s presence in Afghanistan, asserting that no group will be allowed to threaten other countries from Afghan soil.