Even as both sides agreed to extend the ceasefire after peace talks in Istanbul last week, Pakistan and Afghanistan are continuing to fight in rhetorics. Just a few days back, Afghanistan alleged that Pakistan’s military is deliberately fuelling instability along the border to create conditions conducive for a United States return to Afghanistan.
Taliban’s spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid, speaking to TOLO News, claimed that American drones are entering Afghan airspace by passing through Pakistani territory. Pakistan has now reacted to the same, dismissing the accusations. Pakistan’s military on Monday (November 3, 2025) rejected allegations that US drones were operating from Pakistani territory to carry out attacks inside Afghanistan.
“This allegation is false,” said Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, Director-General of the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), during an interaction with senior journalists in Rawalpindi. Chaudhry clarified that no agreement exists between Pakistan and the United States permitting such operations.
His remarks come amid escalating tensions between Islamabad and Kabul following a recent surge in cross-border attacks by the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which Pakistan claims is operating from Afghan soil.
Talks with Kabul focused solely on terrorism issue
Addressing the status of Pakistan-Afghanistan talks, Chaudhry stated Islamabad had a “one-point agenda — terrorism”, stressing that TTP militants based in Afghanistan were responsible for repeated strikes inside Pakistan. He added that Pakistan had engaged the Afghan Taliban in dialogue “with the intention of resolving cross-border militancy through peaceful means,” but warned that “if talks fail, we will address the issue of terrorism by all means.”
Chaudhry also ruled out any engagement with the TTP itself, reiterating that only Kabul’s cooperation could help end the ongoing wave of violence.
Pak-Afghan border clash: Heavy losses on both sides
Highlighting Pakistan’s counterterrorism efforts, Chaudhry revealed that 1,667 terrorists, including 128 Afghan nationals, were killed in 62,113 intelligence-based operations this year. He added that 582 Pakistani security personnel had lost their lives during these operations, underlining the cost of sustained anti-terror campaigns in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.
The Pakistan military official further added that terrorist networks were intertwined with criminal elements and political fronts, and that the security forces faced armed resistance while targeting narcotics-linked networks, noting that poppy cultivation covered nearly 11,000 acres along the Afghan border.
What is Pak’s warning against possible Indian “false flag” action?
In a pointed remark, Chaudhry accused India of planning a potential “false flag operation” in the sea frontier, aimed at portraying a staged terror plot as an attempted attack on Indian interests. “India may stage a false military operation on the sea frontier and tell the international community that it foiled an attempt by terrorists to launch an attack against India,” Chaudhry said.
“We are prepared for any such action.” The statement reflects heightened regional tensions, with Pakistan’s military linking India’s alleged designs, Afghan-based militancy, and US involvement narratives into a complex web of security concerns.
Pakistan questions Taliban’s commitments under Doha deal
Chaudhry further reminded the Afghan Taliban of their commitments made during the 2020 Doha Agreement with the US, particularly the pledge to form a “broad-based, representative government” in Kabul. He implied that the Taliban’s failure to uphold that commitment had contributed to regional instability and allowed groups like the TTP to thrive.