Durand under duress: How Pakistan’s Taliban gamble backfired

Afghanistan and Pakistan person erstwhile again recovered themselves connected the brink of unfastened struggle aft days of deadly cross-border warring that exposed the fragility of their agelong and volatile frontier.

Afghan officials said their forces killed 58 Pakistani soldiers successful overnight “retaliatory operations,” portion Islamabad gave a acold little decease toll of 23, describing the attacks arsenic “unprovoked.

”The exchanges, centred on the 2,600-kilometre Durand Line (which Afghanistan has ne'er recognised), travel accusations by Kabul that Pakistan bombed Afghan territory including: Strikes connected Kabul and a marketplace successful the country’s east.

Pakistan has neither confirmed nor denied involvement, but Afghan Defence Ministry spokesperson Enayatullah Khwarazmi said, “Our equipped forces are afloat prepared to support the nation’s borders and volition present a beardown response.

”Also read: Afghanistan warns Pak amid deadly clash; Torkham borderline shutThe borderline hostility has disrupted the Torkham crossing, a captious commercialized route, and triggered alarm successful the Gulf. Saudi Arabia and Qatar person urged restraint, calling for dialog to “maintain the information and stableness of the region.”

‘This combat is wrong Pakistan’

Afghan overseas curate Amir Khan Muttaqi, presently successful India, denied Islamabad’s accusations that the Taliban harbour members of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), a banned militant radical down caller deadly attacks wrong Pakistan.Also read: Why India’s Kabul outreach matters present - the Afghan comeback explained“There is nary beingness of TTP successful Afghanistan now,” helium told reporters. “They are Pakistani radical from displaced areas and are allowed to unrecorded successful the state arsenic refugees. The borderline is much than 2,400 km long—it could neither beryllium controlled by ‘Changez’ nor ‘Angrez’.

Strength unsocial cannot power it. This combat is wrong Pakistan.”Muttaqi accused Islamabad of failing to “take its radical into confidence” and of “endangering its ain radical to delight a few.” But helium warned that Kabul would enactment if provoked further: “We privation a peaceful solution of the situation, but if the bid efforts don’t succeed, we person different options.”

From partners to rivals

For decades, Pakistan was considered a patron of the Taliban, providing structure and enactment since the group’s emergence successful the 1990s.Pakistan has supported the Taliban since their inception, initially backing the anti-Soviet mujahideen who aboriginal formed the group. In the 1990s, Islamabad was 1 of lone 3 nations to recognise the Taliban authorities and was the past to chopped ties successful 2001. After the US invasion, Pakistan helped the Taliban regroup, offering harmless havens and aesculapian aid, which allowed the question to endure contempt dense battlefield losses.

Islamabad hoped that the Taliban’s instrumentality to powerfulness successful 2021 would unafraid its occidental flank and curb cross-border militancy. Instead, it has seen a resurgence of attacks.However, with the warfare over, the Taliban nary longer relies connected Pakistan for sanctuaries oregon wartime support. Now, it focuses connected gaining legitimacy astatine home, wherever distrust of Pakistan runs deep. “By lashing retired astatine Pakistan, the Taliban hopes to bargain immoderate goodwill from the Afghan public,” Michael Kugelman, the manager of the South Asia Institute astatine the Wilson Center, told Time.comAnalysts accidental Pakistan’s power implicit the Taliban has eroded sharply. “Taliban leaders nary longer request refuge crossed the borderline oregon Pakistani assistance,” wrote Foreign Policy, noting that the leverage Islamabad erstwhile enjoyed “is astatine hazard of being lost.” The Taliban’s reluctance to enactment against the TTP reflects not conscionable ideological affinity but besides home priorities: distancing themselves from Pakistani power helps their pursuit of legitimacy astatine home.“Pakistan finds itself successful a predicament mostly of its ain making—the Taliban enactment that it supported passim overmuch of the 20-year insurgency successful Afghanistan is present sheltering militant groups targeting Islamabad,” Joshua White, a prof successful planetary affairs astatine Johns Hopkins University, told Time.com successful July past year.

The TTP’s deadly resurgence

The TTP, listed by the United Nations arsenic an al-Qaeda-linked violent organisation since 2011, aims to overthrow Pakistan’s authorities and enforce its ain strict mentation of Islamic law.

With an estimated 30,000 to 35,000 members, the radical has waged a bloody run for astir 2 decades, sidesplitting hundreds of soldiers, police, and civilians.Pakistan’s subject campaigns including: Operations Zarb-e-Azb and Radd-ul-Fasaad. erstwhile splintered the group, pushing its leaders into Afghanistan. But the Taliban’s triumph successful Kabul re-energised the TTP, which has since reunited its factions and ramped up attacks.

According to the Pak Institute for Peace Studies (PIPS), unit successful Pakistan successful 2024 returned to levels past seen successful 2015.A UN study successful July 2025 claimed the TTP enjoys “logistical and operational support” from Taliban authorities, a assertion Kabul denies. Islamabad, nether unit from increasing home insecurity, has launched cross-border airstrikes connected suspected TTP hideouts and expelled implicit a cardinal Afghan refugees since past year.“The inability of the Taliban medication to instrumentality factual enactment against the TTP has importantly strained relations,” Islamabad-based expert Tahir Khan told Deutsche Welle. “Unless the contented of the TTP is efficaciously addressed, meaningful betterment successful bilateral ties volition stay elusive.”

What adjacent for Pakistan and the Taliban?

The unit on the Durand Line has erstwhile again shown however Pakistan’s decades-long strategy of nurturing militant proxies for power successful Afghanistan has backfired.

The precise groups it erstwhile supported are present undermining its interior security.Pakistan’s interior curate Mohsin Naqvi has accused Afghan forces of firing connected civilians, informing that “no provocation volition beryllium tolerated.” Islamabad’s retaliatory strikes person reportedly destroyed aggregate Afghan borderline posts and militant camps, though the Taliban assertion to person seized respective Pakistani outposts successful return.Both sides stay locked successful a unsafe rhythm of provocation and denial. Kabul insists the TTP occupation is “a combat wrong Pakistan,” portion Islamabad continues to request action. Yet neither seems consenting to instrumentality the governmental oregon subject risks required for a lasting peace.Until that reckoning comes, the Durand Line volition stay what it has ever been: not a borderline of control, but a responsibility enactment of crisis.(With inputs from agencies)