KABUL — Taliban and Pakistani officials met in Istanbul on Monday for a third consecutive day of peace talks in a bid to secure a lasting truce following deadly border clashes earlier this month.
According to a Reuters report, the negotiations, mediated by Turkey, follow a temporary ceasefire agreed on October 19 in Doha after several days of violence along the border that left dozens dead, the worst such fighting since the Taliban took power in Afghanistan in 2021.
Officials from both sides have given differing accounts of the progress made. Pakistani security sources accused the Taliban of failing to cooperate fully with the dialogue process, insisting that Islamabad would not compromise on its “core demands” regarding cross-border terrorism.
A member of the Taliban delegation rejected those allegations as “false,” saying the talks were progressing “in a friendly environment” and that multiple issues had been discussed.
Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid told Afghanistan’s state broadcaster RTA that the group “supports dialogue and believes that problems and issues can be resolved through dialogue.”
Pakistan’s foreign ministry has not commented on the latest round of talks, but Defence Minister Khawaja Asif warned over the weekend that failure to reach an agreement in Istanbul could lead to “open war.”
Furthermore, U.S. President Donald Trump has again offered to mediate between the two neighbours. Speaking in Kuala Lumpur late Sunday, Trump said, “I’ll get that solved very quickly, I know them both. I have no doubt we are going to get that done quickly.”
The latest tensions erupted after a Pakistani airstrike in Kabul earlier this month reportedly targeted the leader of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), a group separate from but ideologically aligned with the Taliban.
The Taliban responded with attacks on Pakistani military posts along the 2,600-kilometer border.
Pakistan has long accused the Taliban of sheltering TTP militants who launch attacks inside Pakistan, a charge the latter denies.
On Sunday, Pakistan’s military said five of its soldiers and 25 TTP fighters were killed in clashes near the Afghan border, underscoring the fragile security situation even as peace efforts continue in Istanbul.
