Pakistan Dy FM admits 'we are Taliban's spokesperson'; corrects herself after gaffe

In an embarrassment for Pakistan, its junior Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar publicly admitted that her country acts as the 'spokesperson' for the Taliban. Speaking exclusively to Pakistani news outlet Geo News on Saturday, she conceded that Islamabad often holds a brief for Afghanistan on global forums. Realising her gaffe, Khar hastened to add that the Shehbaz Sharif-led government advocated engagement with the Taliban regime as Pakistan will have to face the repercussions of hunger and terrorism in Afghanistan. 

Pakistan's MoS Foreign Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar remarked, "If there is an escalation of citizens being killed on the Pakistan border, I don't have any room left. We don't conduct diplomacy by dictating to others what to do. We are telling our own view. Our view is not the Western view. We don't want such conditions in Afghanistan. In some ways, we become their spokesperson in front of the world. It is Muttaqi Sahab's job to be Afghanistan's spokesperson and not ours. There should be clarity on this."

She added, "We are not their spokesperson, we are Pakistan's spokesperson. We say that engage with them. Why do we say this? Because apart from Iran, Pakistan is perhaps the only nation to share a 2600 km border (with Afghanistan). If you enable starvation by closing their banking channels, eliminating all kinds of ties with them, don't let trade happen and debilitate the system, who will be impacted? When people will die of hunger there or go towards terrorism, which country will be affected? Those who are sitting across the Atlantic or those who share a 2600 km boundary?"

Pakistan's dalliance with Taliban

As per sources, ex-ISI chief Faiz Hameed had a big role in the formation of the caretaker Afghanistan Cabinet led by Mullah Mohammad Hasan Akhund. This was evident from the fact that Hameed was seen visiting Kabul on multiple occasions after the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan. Moreover, the Pakistan military's drones and helicopters aided the terrorist group to capture the Panjshir province from the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan. Moreover, sources revealed that the Pakistan military was favouring the Haqqani network whose key leaders have found a place in the government. 

Stopping short of formally recognising the new Taliban government, Pakistan has repeatedly called on other countries to provide financial assistance for Afghanistan despite the violation of human rights. However, the relationship between the neighbours soured owing to the inability of the Afghan Taliban to curb the TTP's activities and the killing of Al-Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri in Kabul. After Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif expressed concern over the presence of banned outfits on Afghanistan soil during his speech at the UN General Assembly, the Taliban rejected this assertion.