Pakistan urges Kabul to take 'practical steps' against militants based in Afghanistan

ISLAMABAD

Pakistan on Friday urged Kabul to take "practical steps" against Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants "based" in Afghanistan, as cross-border attacks have increased in northwestern border areas.

Pakistan raised the TTP issue with the Afghan side during a recent high-level meeting between officials of the two sides in Islamabad, Foreign Ministry spokesman Shafqat Ali Khan told Anadolu in response to a question during a news conference.

"This is an issue we continue to emphasize with the Afghan side, and we highlight what is happening, the cost Pakistan is paying, the cost the bilateral relationship is paying, and the cost efforts to regional development and regional integration are paying," Khan said.

He expressed hope that Kabul would "recognize the gravity of the threat and work" with Pakistan to address the security challenge.

There was no immediate response from the Afghan authorities to the latest remarks by Islamabad.

Last week, the Pakistani army claimed that it had killed at least 30 suspected militants while attempting to cross the Pakistan-Afghanistan border in the North Waziristan district in northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

Earlier, on June 28, at least 13 Pakistani soldiers were killed in a suicide bombing in the North Waziristan district near the Afghan border, while 14 terrorists were killed by the military in subsequent operations.

Islamabad accuses Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants, who are allegedly based in Afghanistan, of carrying out terrorist attacks in Pakistan, while Kabul denies that such attacks are launched from its soil.

Pakistan-US trade agreement

The Foreign Ministry spokesman said that a senior delegation visited Washington for trade negotiations with the US for a trade deal.

"We are hopeful that we could come up with a good agreement that serves the interests of both countries," he said.

On June 24, Pakistan’s Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb stated that Islamabad and Washington might finalize a trade agreement as early as the following week. However, the deal has yet to materialize.

The Trump administration imposed a 29% "reciprocal" tariff on Pakistan in April, later suspending them for 90 days. The US president now postponed the tariff deadline again to Aug. 1 and sent letters to several countries informing them of the tariff rates they will face if no agreement is reached.