Afghanistan-Pakistan Peace Talks Collapse, but Ceasefire Holds, Says Taliban

Peace negotiations between Afghanistan and Pakistan have collapsed, though a ceasefire between the two South Asian neighbors remains in effect, a Taliban spokesperson confirmed on Saturday.

Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban’s chief spokesperson, said the talks broke down because Islamabad insisted that Kabul take responsibility for Pakistan’s internal security — a demand he described as “beyond Afghanistan’s capacity.”

“The ceasefire that has been established has not been violated by us so far, and it will continue to be observed,” Mujahid said.

On Friday, Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif announced that peace talks held in Istanbul had failed to produce an agreement. The discussions were aimed at preventing renewed clashes along the volatile border. Asif said the ceasefire would remain in place “as long as there are no attacks from Afghan soil.”

The breakdown in negotiations came a day after Afghan and Pakistani troops exchanged fire along their shared frontier, coinciding with the resumption of talks in Istanbul.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan met Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in Baku on Saturday, expressing hope that the peace efforts would “yield results toward lasting stability” and reaffirming Turkiye’s commitment to facilitating dialogue, according to a statement from his office.

Last month, deadly border clashes between the Pakistani and Afghan militaries killed dozens — the worst fighting since the Taliban’s return to power in 2021. Both sides agreed to a ceasefire in Doha in October, but a second round of negotiations in Istanbul last week ended without progress over disagreements on militant groups operating inside Afghanistan that target Pakistan.

For decades, Pakistan and the Taliban maintained close relations, but ties have soured sharply in recent years. The October violence followed Pakistani airstrikes earlier that month on Kabul and other areas, targeting leaders of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), a militant outfit hostile to Islamabad.