The Afghan Taliban’s Foreign Minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, has openly rejected Pakistan’s conditions in the latest round of bilateral talks, calling Islamabad’s demands “neither reasonable nor feasible.” The failed negotiations, which were largely centered on Pakistan’s push for the Afghan government to take strong action against the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), have once again exposed the widening rift and mistrust between the two neighbors.

According to diplomatic sources, Pakistan entered the talks insisting that Afghanistan either relocate, detain, or expel TTP fighters allegedly operating from Afghan territory. However, the Taliban leadership maintained that Pakistan is trying to transfer its internal security failure onto Kabul. Muttaqi stressed that Pakistan has “long used militant groups as instruments of state policy,” and must now confront the consequences of those policies instead of demanding Afghanistan undertake “impossible” military actions.

For Kabul, Islamabad’s insistence appeared hypocritical. The Taliban argue that Pakistan supported armed militant networks for decades, allowing them to find safe haven, recruit, and reorganize only to now demand their complete elimination overnight. Afghan officials also pointed to Pakistan’s shifting political conditions, economic crises, and military instability as the real drivers behind Islamabad’s heightened aggression.

In Pakistan, the situation reflects deep strategic confusion. The army leadership has failed to develop a coherent counter-terror doctrine after years of dependency on proxy groups. Instead of internal reform, officials have turned to blaming Kabul, further straining relations. Analysts say that Pakistan’s military establishment is stuck between denying responsibility for the TTP’s resurgence and demanding the Taliban enforce the very controls Pakistan itself failed to uphold for decades.

The collapse of talks has significant security implications. Border clashes have already increased this year, and trade routes through the Torkham and Spin Boldak crossings have faced frequent closures. Public sentiment on both sides is hardening, with Afghanistan portraying itself as resisting foreign pressure while Pakistan faces rising insecurity at home and declining regional clout.

The diplomatic fallout also signals a larger strategic shift: Pakistan’s once-dominant influence over Afghanistan is weakening rapidly. As the Taliban government consolidates its authority, the era of Islamabad dictating terms in Kabul appears to be ending leaving Pakistan’s policymakers struggling to adapt to a reality they helped create but no longer control. 

This image is taken from India TV.