Pakistan will not hold unconditional talks with Afghanistan, the Foreign Office said on Friday, setting a firm condition for any future dialogue with Kabul.
Foreign Office spokesperson Sajjad Haider Khan told the weekly media briefing in Islamabad that Pakistan was not avoiding engagement, but any talks had to produce real results. “The talks will not be unconditional,” he said.
The spokesperson added that Pakistan would welcome sincere efforts by friendly countries to help settle the dispute.
No unconditional talks with Afghanistan without verifiable action
Mr Khan said Pakistan had only one demand: a verifiable mechanism to ensure a complete halt to terrorist activities launched from Afghan soil against Pakistan.
“Pakistan has been raising the issue of terrorism emanating from Afghanistan at different forums. Unfortunately, the Taliban regime has been taking one step forward and one step backward,” he said.
Islamabad blames the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and other militant groups for using Afghan territory to plan attacks inside Pakistan. Kabul rejects the charge.
The Foreign Office position follows weeks of strain. Pakistan’s special representative for Afghanistan attended the latest Moscow Format consultations on October 5, but the meeting ended without a joint statement. Our earlier report on the Moscow Format deadlock noted the same sticking point: wording on terrorist networks operating from Afghanistan.
Moscow Format failure and Russia’s mediation offer
Russia recently renewed its offer to mediate between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Moscow is the only country to have formally recognised the Taliban government, and its special envoy for Afghanistan, Zamir Kabulov, repeated the offer after the October 5 talks collapsed.
Mr Khan said Islamabad was not aware of any formal Russian initiative under discussion. “At present, I am not aware of any separate, formal Russian mediation initiative being under discussion,” he said, adding that Pakistan remained open to engagement that produced tangible results.
He said the absence of a joint communiqué at the Moscow Format meeting spoke for itself. The Afghan delegation, he noted, refused to accept language on terrorist networks that had been acceptable in the previous year’s document.
“This shows that there is reluctance on the part of Afghanistan that terrorism is originating from its soil,” he said.
Pakistan had pressed the terrorism issue at the Moscow Format through its envoy, but the two sides could not bridge the gap.
Earlier mediation rounds also fell short
The current deadlock is not new. Qatar and Turkiye helped broker a ceasefire last October, but later rounds failed to reach a lasting settlement. Saudi Arabia separately hosted discussions, while China held talks in Urumqi in April. None resolved the core disagreement: what concrete steps Kabul will take against militant groups, and how compliance can be verified.
Pakistan has also raised the matter at the United Nations, where it accused India of backing Taliban-linked terror groups, and earlier this month confirmed calibrated airstrikes inside Afghanistan against what it called terrorist hideouts.
Strong warning to India over fresh threats
The Foreign Office also reacted sharply to Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, who a day earlier threatened a bigger strike in the event of any future terrorist attack. Speaking at the National Defence Conclave 2026 in New Delhi, Singh recalled Operation Sindoor and referred to earlier Indian military operations.
“We reject and condemn the Indian Defence Minister’s provocative remarks entailing a threat of Indian aggression against Pakistan,” Mr Khan said. He called the remarks reckless and said they reflected a hegemonistic mindset that endangered peace in South Asia.
The spokesperson reminded New Delhi of last May’s military confrontation, when Pakistan said it gave a fitting reply to Indian aggression. “India should draw an appropriate lesson from last year’s experience,” he said.
Original reporting: Dawn
Frequently asked questions
Why does Pakistan rule out unconditional talks with Afghanistan?
Pakistan says dialogue must be backed by a verifiable mechanism that ensures terrorist attacks from Afghan soil stop completely. Without such a mechanism, it argues, talks produce statements but no change on the ground.
What is the Moscow Format?
It is a regional consultation forum on Afghanistan that includes Russia, Pakistan, China, Iran and Central Asian states. The October 5 round ended without a joint communiqué after Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban delegation disagreed over references to terrorist networks.
Has Russia offered to mediate?
Yes. Moscow has renewed its offer to facilitate a settlement if both sides request it. Pakistan says it is not aware of any formal Russian mediation initiative currently under discussion, but welcomes sincere efforts by friendly countries.
