ISLAMABAD: The Taliban’s latest allegations accusing Pakistan offacilitating American drone incursions into Afghan airspace represent acalculated effort to tarnish Islamabad’s image without presenting anyverifiable evidence. In a recent interview with Iran’s Tasnim news agency,Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid asserted that United States dronescontinue to violate Afghan skies by entering through “some neighbouringcountries,” a thinly veiled reference to Pakistan.
Notably, Mujahid provided no specifics regarding flight paths, timings, orany form of documentation to support his claims, rendering the accusationspeculative at best.
A senior United States Department of Defence official, when approached forcomment on the Taliban’s statements, offered a terse response: “We havenothing to offer on this matter.” This dismissal from Washington highlightsthe absence of credible intelligence or operational data backing theTaliban’s narrative. Analysts view such reticence from the Pentagon asindicative of the claims’ lack of substance, especially given the UnitedStates’ continued interest in monitoring terrorist activities across theregion.
The controversy surrounding aerial violations is not new. Prior to theTaliban’s takeover in August 2021, Afghanistan’s air traffic managementsystem depended extensively on NATO coordination and foreign technicalsupport. Since then, the Taliban regime has struggled to establishindependent control over its airspace, occasionally raising concerns aboutunauthorised overflights. However, experts argue that the Taliban’spersistent finger-pointing at Pakistan serves a broader strategic purpose:diverting attention from Afghanistan’s transformation into a sanctuary formilitant organisations.
Under Taliban governance, Afghanistan has witnessed a resurgence of groupssuch as the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Islamic State-KhorasanProvince (IS-K), and remnants of Al-Qaeda. Intelligence reports indicatethat these networks operate training camps, plan cross-border attacks, andrecruit fighters with relative impunity. Pakistan, which shares a2,600-kilometre porous border with Afghanistan, has borne the brunt of thisinstability, suffering repeated terrorist incidents orchestrated fromAfghan soil. Islamabad’s repeated calls for the Taliban to honourcommitments made under the Doha Agreement—particularly regarding theprevention of terrorism—have gone largely unheeded.
The timing of Mujahid’s remarks coincides with mounting internationalpressure on Kabul to address its counter-terrorism failures. By fabricatingexternal complicity in drone activities, the Taliban seek to portraythemselves as victims of foreign aggression rather than enablers of globaljihad. This tactic mirrors previous instances where Afghan officials haveaccused neighbours of interference while ignoring internal governancedeficits. Yet, such deflection is unlikely to resonate beyond sympatheticaudiences in Tehran or Doha.
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Pakistan’s foreign policy establishment maintains that constructiveengagement with the Taliban remains essential for regional stability, buttrust cannot be built on falsehoods. Islamabad has invested heavily inborder fencing, intelligence sharing, and diplomatic initiatives to curbmilitancy. In contrast, the Taliban’s refusal to dismantle terrorinfrastructure undermines prospects for normalised relations.
Ultimately, the international community recognises Afghanistan’s centralrole in contemporary security challenges. Attempts to shift blame ontoPakistan through unsubstantiated drone allegations only reinforceperceptions of Kabul’s unwillingness to confront its responsibilities. Ascross-border attacks persist and terrorist safe havens expand, the onusfalls on the Taliban to demonstrate tangible progress rather than resortingto rhetorical diversion.
Source: www.defense.gov/News/Releases/”>https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Source: https://mod.gov.pk/Press-Releases