Daily Times

Though never been a colony, Afghanistan has gone through a number of invasions from Maurya Empire to the recent one by US and its allies. It has remained a politically unstable country largely due to the interference of global and regional powers combined with multiple actors working to fulfill their own interest, leaving behind a weak and torn apart Afghanistan. Amidst all the chaos, Pakistan has always supported Afghanistan, a step ahead from all its other so called well-wishers. Building peace and stability requires more than just diplomatic wrangling and financial support; it also requires rehabilitation, cultural interchange, and education.

Pakistan has always advocated for a peaceful and stable Afghanistan. Pakistan’s effort throughout the peace process were praiseworthy from bringing the Taliban to the negotiation table till the takeover of Kabul and even after that and it continues to this day. Since September, 2021 around 14,945 tons of humanitarian assistance had been delivered to Afghanistan under the arrangement of Pak Afghan Cooperation Forum. Moreover, Pakistan is providing $500 million for capacity building in various sectors. Alone in healthcare sector, Afghanistan’s three major hospitals including Nishtar Kidney Centre Jalalabad ($7million), 400 bed Jinnah hospital Kabul ($118.854m) and Naeb Aminullah Khan hospital Logar ($20 million) were built by Pakistan’s assistance. Besides this, Pakistan’s investment in TAPI and Rail Project equals to 10-year budget of the country.

What is more is a fact; Pakistan is the only consumer of Afghan coal that is one of the biggest revenue generating resources. As per reports, towards the end of May 2022, Afghanistan had gathered around 3 billion Afghanis in custom revenue on more than 16 billion Afghanis worth of coal export in the last 6 months. Although an essential booster for the country’s economy, benefiting from the miners to the transporters it was projected as if Pakistan was stealing Afghanistan’s natural resources. Nevertheless, South African market offers better opportunity to Pakistan but the latter has decided to help Afghan brethren by any means even if it costs us like always!

Taliban have not reciprocated even a single favor. No other country has done for Afghans what Pakistan has done for them, but still, they blame Pakistan and follow the line of our adversaries. Whether it is about the settlement of Durand Line or providing safe heavens to anti-Pakistan elements, they have disappointed Pakistan. The Taliban ministers in their discourses still label it as a hypothetical line rather rejuvenating the concept of Pashtunistan. TTP since its resurgence has established itself in Afghanistan and executed attacks in Pakistan. TTP’s efforts to build a Shariah-based regime in Pakistan have gained momentum in the wake of the Taliban’s formation of an Islamic Emirate. Now under the de facto political asylum of Taliban, they still harbor attacks inside Pakistan and IEA is doing nothing to stop them. TTP fighters are Afghan nationals, in the backdrop of negotiations, IEA and GDI let TTP enter Pakistan, where they have resumed terrorist activities. Moreover, reportedly TTP is using local mosques in Nangarhar and Kunar to raise funds to fight against Pakistan. On one side, they claim to counter ISKP and on the other side they are backing TTP; double standards to deal with terrorist organizations?

Recently, as the idea of Taliban 2.0 has gained significant traction, they are still labeled as Pakistan’s proxy by the hostile elements. Being highly media scared, only to refute this narrative, when their media and people unfairly compare Pakistan to India and paint Pakistan as their adversary, despite the reality that they are reaping enormous benefits, they do nothing to counter them. Couple of weeks back, in a presser, Pakistan’s Interior Minister erroneously called Afghanistan an enemy for which within an hour clarification had been issued. This shows how sensitive Pakistan is in its dealings with Afghanistan. Contrastingly, be it Hamid Karzai who in an interview with a German magazine, when asked about the issue of girls’ education, responded that it is not a religious issue but a political decision at the behest of Pakistan or Mullah Yaqoob who directly blames Pakistan for providing air passage to Afghanistan, when Afghanistan’s radar system is dysfunctional. By doing this he has in fact stamped hostile country’s anti-Pakistan narrative.

India has always seen Afghanistan through its security prism to contain China by containing Pakistan in the region. In the past, Ghani-Saleh-Doval Nexus has been apparent. Now, India has honed all of its soft power strategies to infiltrate Afghan society on one hand and on the other hand it allows ISKP to have Indians recruited in the terror organization that is currently carrying out attacks inside Afghanistan. Despite the fact that no other country has done for Afghans what Pakistan has done for them, Afghans still blame Pakistan and drag the line of our adversaries. Pakistan has always wished and worked for peaceful neighborhood and continues to do so. Question is, are the neighbors thinking on the same line?

The writer works at the Institute of Regional Studies and can be reached at reema.asim81@gmail.com.