Pakistan is the world’s fifth most populated country. It has made a significant impact on a regional and global scale. Pakistan is the second-largest Muslim country in the world, and it plays a crucial and prominent role in the Muslim community. A country with 220 million people started its journey in 1947. In the past 75 years, it has built a political and administrative system and taken a hard path of nation-building. A cursory examination of Pakistan’s position as a passionate peace advocate reveals several instances in which it has actively participated in regional and international attempts for stability and peace. Pakistan thinks that all types of violence should be condemned. It has emerged from being a target of religious terrorism and extremism into a country with a strong will to seek a better future.
According to Pakistan, priority should be given to reviving Afghanistan’s economy, which has demanded action to solve the escalating humanitarian catastrophe in Afghanistan. Ambassador Munir Akram addressed the UN Security Council’s “Arria-Formula” conference and said that Pakistan’s top goal is to resolve the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan. He also said that security and peace in this neighboring nation are of critical significance to Pakistan. The conference on Prevention Economic Collapse and Examining Chances for Development and Recovery in Afghanistan was called by Russia using the Arria Formula, which was developed in honor of Diego Arriva, a former UN ambassador from Venezuela. It is an informal consultation method that allows the 15-member Council to hear from people in a non-confidential context.
After the Taliban reclaimed control in 2021, the U.S. blocked seven billion dollars in Da Afghanistan Bank (DAB) funds owned in the United States. The United States does not accept the official Taliban government, although it has conducted discussions with the Taliban over unfreezing their assets. The Pakistani ambassador said that a road map is required to determine how to reconstruct the Afghan economy, adding that the Organization of Islamic Cooperation is carefully considering how to infuse Afghan assets stored overseas into the country’s political system without breaching the rules and values. If the humanitarian situation does not cease, in addition to the suffering and pain of 95% of the Afghan population, there will be another influx of refugees that Islamabad or any of its other neighbors will not be able to manage. Pakistan has welcomed approximately three million Afghan refugees over the previous four decades.
Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that Pakistan was requesting an increase in humanitarian assistance for Afghanistan and emphasized the need to prevent the economic collapse of Afghanistan. Pakistan collaborated with the world community on Afghanistan’s acknowledgment and would conclude in tandem with the global community. Pakistan continues to promote participation, especially in light of the mounting humanitarian catastrophe in Afghanistan. And if 95% of Afghani fall into poverty, this is not healthy for the Afghan people or for the region. He said that the global community should focus on the future, adding that abandoning Afghanistan again will serve no purpose.
Islamabad has begun sending tens of millions of metric tons of grain to Afghanistan as humanitarian aid, citing the neighboring country’s dire humanitarian and financial conditions as a need for the global community’s prompt intervention. Islamabad has promised over $28 million in humanitarian assistance to Kabul, comprising 50,000 tons of wheat, winter housing, and essential medical items. Several trucks have carried medical and food goods to Afghanistan. The international community must immediately increase its attempts to reach the Afghan people to alleviate the humanitarian catastrophe and stabilize the economy.
Pakistani politicians stated that deteriorating humanitarian and economic situations might push Afghans to seek refuge in neighboring countries and throughout the globe if Afghanistan does not get immediate help. The UN estimates that about 23 million people, or around 55 percent of Afghanistan’s population, endure acute hunger, and approximately 9 million are in danger of famine due to years of conflict and global sanctions.
After the Taliban’s control of the nation and the exit of the U.S.-led coalition, the humanitarian condition has deteriorated. Additionally, the Biden administration has put economic restrictions on the Taliban, throwing the economy into unexpected turmoil and making it impossible for the population to get sufficient food. The Taliban have sought international recognition for their government and the release of cash. Pakistan has urged the U.S and other countries to cooperate with Afghanistan’s new leadership to avert the impending humanitarian and financial calamity.
The U.S. Treasury Department eased restrictions on Kabul and said it would grant licenses to ensure some foreign assistance could reach Afghanistan’s people and not to Taliban officials whom the United States sanctioned. The administration of the Taliban lacks global recognition and the economic and diplomatic advantages that would result from it. Islamabad should utilize its relationships with prudence to encourage the Taliban to make governance concessions, including support for fundamental rights and commitment to anti-terrorism pledges, which may gain them more support abroad and help alleviate Afghanistan’s humanitarian disaster.
In policy statements, bilateral talks, and multilateral venues, Islamabad urges foreign countries, notably the United States and its Western partners, to negotiate with the Taliban, relax trade restrictions, and provide Kabul with economic and humanitarian support. Pakistani politicians worry that ongoing sanctions and restrictions on donor aid would cause the collapse of the Afghan economy and exacerbate an already dire humanitarian catastrophe. In addition, they stress that the West is far abler to curb Taliban conduct through incentives than punitive measures.
However, nations such as Russia, China, and Iran, who have chosen greater contact with the Taliban administration, are unlikely to formally recognize it due to the Taliban’s inactivity. Even less likely is that the United States and its Western allies would recognize the Taliban administration and waive all restrictions. Given America’s influence in global financial organizations such as International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, on which Pakistan relies to support its faltering economy, deteriorating ties with the U.S. might be problematic.
The cross-border ramifications of Afghanistan’s diplomatic and economic issues are also a cause of concern to Pakistan. Afghanistan’s economic crash is preventing Pakistan from reviving commercial relations that were severely harmed by tensions with the administration of former Afghan President Ashraf Ghani. Increasing instability and economic crisis might result in tens of thousands of destitute Afghans seeking refuge and means of subsistence in Pakistan.
Since the Taliban came back to power in Kabul, Islamabad says that fugitive TTP leaders have stepped up operations across the border from their bases in Afghanistan. This year alone, the insurgency has killed nearly 500 Pakistanis, primarily security officers. Furthermore, the Afghan Taliban backed TTP against Pakistan in order to divert international attention away from the country’s internal problems, which included unlawful killings, human rights violations, enforced disappearances, chromic poverty, widespread food insecurity, and violations of international law.
Here are a few suggestions: Pakistan should maintain its efforts to lift Western sanctions and secure structural funds for Afghanistan. Pakistan uses covert diplomacy and public messaging to persuade the Taliban to go beyond meeting donor expectations on governance, such as respect for fundamental rights and counterterrorism responsibilities. When negotiating with the Taliban, Pakistan kept its strategic interests in mind by refusing to support the Taliban’s limits on women’s rights, which they defend with a rigorous interpretation of Sharia. If Islamabad seems to support the Taliban’s strategy, it risks empowering domestic extremists who share the same philosophy.
Pakistan also gives as much help as it can, based on how many resources it has, and keeps land routes open for UN agencies, non-government groups, bilateral donors, and humanitarian aid.
