In order to prevent terrorists from striking Pakistan, the US has warned the Afghan Taliban.
The statements from the State Department spokeswoman came hours after the Pakistani Army cautioned the Afghan Taliban against giving Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan safe havens.
The Afghan Taliban have been warned by the US to stop using Afghanistan as a “safe haven” for terrorist strikes.
In answer to a query on recent warnings sent by Pakistan’s military forces to Afghanistan, encouraging the Afghan Taliban to take action against terrorists carrying out strikes within Pakistan, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said this at a press briefing on Monday.
According to a news conference transcript provided on the website of the Department of State, Miller said that it is the interim Taliban government’s duty to stop terrorists from utilizing its territory for terrorism.
“I will say that we have made very clear that we believe the Taliban has the responsibility to prevent – Afghanistan from being used as a safe haven for launching terrorist attacks,” he added.
Only a few hours before, the Pakistani Army had urged the Afghan Taliban not to provide refuge to Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), the terrorist organization that unites a number of militant factions.
The army said in a statement after a meeting of senior commanders in Rawalpindi that the safe havens and advanced weaponry used by the TTP insurgents represent a security concern to the nation.
“The sanctuaries and liberty of action available to the proscribed TTP and other terrorist groups of that ilk in a neighboring country and availability of latest weapons to the terrorists were noted as major reasons impacting the security of Pakistan,” the statement said.
Earlier on Friday, the head of Pakistan’s army said that TTP terrorists are free to operate in Afghanistan across the border and asked Kabul to forbid the use of Afghan land against any nation.
During his visit to the southwest Balochistan province after recent assaults in which 12 troops were killed, Gen. Syed Asim Munir said, “The Armed Forces of Pakistan have major worries about the safe havens and liberty of action available to the TTP in Afghanistan.
In two assaults and following operations on Wednesday in the Balochistan towns of Zhob and Sui, twelve Pakistani troops and seven terrorists were killed.
Over the weekend, Afghanistan was again accused of failing to uphold its commitments as a neighbor by Pakistan’s defense minister, Khawaja Asif.
According to Asif, Kabul is not upholding its end of the 2020 Doha Agreement.
He said in a tweet that although five to six million Afghans have been living in Pakistan with full rights for the previous 40 to 50 years, terrorists who have killed Pakistanis may seek asylum there.
“This scenario can’t go on like this. Pakistan would use all available means to safeguard its territory and people, he said.
Suhail Shaheen, a top Afghan Taliban official and the head of the group’s political office in Qatar, stated in a tweet last week that “We are committed to not allowing anyone to use the soil of Afghanistan against any country, including neighboring countries, but as regards internal security of a country, it is their responsibility.”
