Pakistani Defense Minister: Any agreement with the Taliban must be written, not verbal

that any future agreement must be written and officially documented between the two sides.

In remarks made to the media in Islamabad on Friday,

Asif explained that Pakistan is closely following the negotiations taking place in Istanbul.

Which aims to reach a security and political agreement

that guarantees stable relations between the two countries.

A comprehensive agreement addressing security issues

Pakistani Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif said his country seeks to have these talks lead to

a comprehensive agreement that addresses the complex security issues on the shared border.

Foremost among these is the activity of armed groups

that use Afghan territory as a base for operations against Pakistan.

Pakistani Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif added that the Pakistani government cannot accept “verbal promises

or undocumented understandings”.

This is a reference to the failure of previous understandings

that were not officially documented.

He stressed that the current stage requires clear

and written commitments from both parties.

Mutual accusations between Kabul and Islamabad

This stance comes amid escalating tensions between Islamabad and the Taliban movement.

This comes against the backdrop of mutual accusations regarding support

for armed groups such as the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

Which is active on the border and carries out frequent attacks against the Pakistani army.

According to Asif, the Pakistani government hopes that the Istanbul talks

will contribute to building more stable and cooperative relations.

With the current Afghan government, in a way that serves

the security of the region and the common interests of both countries.