Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry has rejected recent comments by Abdul Latif Mansoor, the Taliban’s Minister of Energy and Water, calling them contrary to “common sense, history, and the facts.”
Mansoor had claimed that Pakistan could not tolerate a strong central government in Afghanistan and viewed the Taliban no differently from the Mujahideen. He also alleged that Islamabad feared an independent, self-reliant Afghanistan under any leadership.
Speaking at a press briefing on Friday, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Shafqat Ali Khan said no country has a greater stake in Afghanistan’s stability than Pakistan. He added that the Pakistani government would raise Mansoor’s remarks directly with the Taliban administration.
Diplomatic Ties Upgraded
Khan also announced that Pakistan’s diplomatic relations with the Taliban have been elevated to the ambassadorial level under a bilateral agreement. He said the Taliban envoy in Pakistan now enjoys full ambassadorial protocol and that “no further action is required.”
The spokesperson confirmed that Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi will visit Pakistan, though no date has been set.
Earlier, a US source told Afghanistan International that Washington had blocked Muttaqi’s planned visit in response to the Taliban’s continued denial of detaining Mahmood Shah Habibi, an Afghan-American citizen. The source added that US pressure on the Taliban was “only just beginning.”
