Behind the carefully staged smiles and polite diplomatic language exchanged in Kabul, real questions remain unanswered about the Taliban regime’s sincerity, capacity, and willingness to engage as a responsible neighbor with Pakistan.
During a recent meeting between Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and Taliban-appointed Prime Minister Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund, both sides spoke of “brotherhood,” “cooperation,” and “good intentions.” Yet reality paints a far different picture — one where Afghanistan under Taliban control remains a source of cross-border instability, militant shelter, and failed governance.
While Pakistan has repeatedly borne the brunt of cross-border terror attacks and infiltration from Afghan soil, the Taliban leadership continues to issue vague statements about peace and dialogue without addressing the core problem: its refusal to act decisively against groups like TTP and their affiliates who use Afghan territory with impunity.
The Taliban’s so-called calls for “non-violence” and “mutual understanding” ring hollow, especially as they fail to reintegrate even their own returning citizens — thousands of whom have been repatriated from Pakistan after overstaying or being involved in unlawful activity. Despite grand rhetoric, the Taliban still lacks any structured policy or infrastructure to absorb and protect these vulnerable returnees.
While Pakistan has honored international obligations and carried out necessary deportations in the interest of its internal security, the Taliban’s response has been either silence or blame-shifting, without any tangible cooperation on refugee management, border control, or intelligence sharing.
Moreover, the Taliban is eager to sign transit and trade agreements like the Trilateral Trans-Afghan Corridor but offers no commitment to curb the exploitation of Pakistani security gaps by militant networks operating inside Afghanistan. Such selective engagement — economic on one side, irresponsible on the other — suggests a desire for benefit without responsibility.
The Taliban’s quest for international legitimacy is also visibly tied to using bilateral optics for image-building, rather than substance. Repeated calls for “mutual respect” mean little when Taliban ministers allow anti-Pakistan propaganda to flourish and do nothing to ensure Afghanistan is not used as a launchpad for regional instability.
If Afghanistan truly seeks regional cooperation, it must first respect its borders, control its territory, and stop playing victim while sheltering groups that endanger the peace of neighboring countries.
Until the Taliban proves it can act like a state rather than a regime of slogans and soft threats, the diplomatic smiles exchanged in Kabul will remain just that: smiles — empty and performative.
