Trump is back at the White House, unleashing sweeping executive orders, including a ban on resettling 1,600 Afghan refugees— some of them allies who aided America’s fight against Taliban terror.
But the Taliban’s threat is spreading rapidly, and by turning his back on it, Trump is inviting a backlash that could shatter America’s security.
America was caught off guard by the Taliban’s rapid takeover of Afghanistan after its hambolically pulled out in 2021—an astonishing 11-day campaign which saw the extremist group rapidly regain power after being ousted more than two decades earlier.
Now, the U.S. risks losing Pakistan, its historic South Asian ally. Crippled by debt consuming half its budget, devastated by catastrophic floods, and mired in political unrest, Pakistan is teetering as public faith in the central government erodes. Many are turning to separatist causes like the Baloch movement, while the Taliban waits on the sidelines, ready to capitalize on any instability.
Already the Taliban have escalated attacks in Pakistan since retaking Afghanistan – diverting aid to proxies like Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan to sponsor devastating suicide bombings and massacres of Shia pilgrims. A recent attack on a Pakistani dam stresses their growing mastery of ‘hybrid warfare’ tactic used by Russia against Ukraine. By targeting critical energy infrastructure, they seek to destabilize Pakistan, edging this nuclear-armed nation closer to collapse.
This unstable reality could worsen with Trump’s return. With hawks like Marco Rubio stacking his cabinet, eager to counter China’s rise, Trump is poised to strengthen ties with Modi’s India, which has recently courted the Taliban to gain influence and put economic pressure on Pakistan—a key hub hosting Beijing’s $62 billion investment strategy.
Trump may think he’s killing two birds with one stone here, but the risk is grave. Armed with $7 billion in abandoned U.S. military gear, the Taliban could inch closer to their long-held ambition of seizing Pakistan’s nuclear weapons to secure Afghanistan from invasions and export terror abroad – the result of which would be catastrophic.
If Trump is serious about ending America’s ‘forever wars’ and blocking rivals like Russia and China from exploiting this power vacuum with hybrid warfare, he must focus on keeping Pakistan stable—a challenge that demands fresh thinking.
Of course, his allegation that America is getting a raw deal on international aid—backed by his latest executive order freeze—makes it clear that material support for Pakistan is off the table.
This is why he must recognize that diplomacy—not brinkmanship—is key to safeguarding American interests and achieving lasting regional peace. Personal diplomacy, Trump’s forte, often doesn’t require massive budgets. After all, he negotiated the safe withdrawal of U.S troops during his first term, using threats against Taliban leaders to ensure they stuck to the plan.
Trump should build on his track record by re-engaging with the Taliban, recognizing their increasing need for international legitimacy—a leverage point the U.S. can use, as long as the Taliban avoid actions that destabilize Pakistan.
Similarly, a U.S.-India partnership to counter China’s investment imperialism makes sense, but it must be carefully balanced to avoid facilitating Indian-sponsored instability in Pakistan, which could escalate into a nuclear crisis for Washington.
Balance is key—Trump must play diplomat, not arsonist, in a region already on edge.
This diplomatic tact is what Trump will soon need to exploit dissent emerging within the Taliban. Just this week, a senior Taliban official broke ranks, criticizing the regime and calling for a reversal of the education ban on 1.4 million Afghan girls. This dissent proves how even extreme movements can fracture—offering Trump opportunities to secure concessions.
Ironically, these cracks originated in Islamabad, Pakistan, where the International Conference on Girls’ Education in Muslim Communities convened earlier this month. The event brought together Islamic scholars, political leaders, and activists, including Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai, who delivered a scathing critique of the Taliban’s oppressive regime. Organized by the Muslim World League under Secretary-General Sheikh Mohammad al-Issa, this landmark gathering aimed to confront jihadist extremism from within the Islamic community.
The conference culminated in the historic Islamabad Declaration, a groundbreaking faith-driven compact that reframes girls’ education as both a religious duty and a societal imperative. By dismantling extremist narratives that distort faith to justify oppression, the Declaration asserts that such ideologies are fundamentally un-Islamic. And backed by nearly every Islamic sect, this initiative signifies a powerful rejection of the Taliban’s draconian ideology—one that is now dangerously seeping beyond Pakistan, into Syria and Libya, fueled in part by America’s military response.
Beyond rhetoric, the Islamabad Declaration lays out actionable plans for collaboration among Muslim-majority nations, international organizations, and educational institutions. It exemplifies the kind of soft power approach America has been criminally underusing but could embrace under Trump, leveraging influence through persuasion and culture to repair its tarnished image in Pakistan and the Islamic world.
By supporting such initiatives, the U.S. could help isolate the Taliban, leveraging faith-based strategies to counter jihadist ideologies without boots on the ground.
This effort not only echoes the Qur’anic call to challenge extremist distortions but also bolsters regional stability. Remarkably, it represents a rare convergence of U.S. and Islamic interests. Securing Pakistan from Taliban attacks could free its government to tackle pressing domestic issues independently, reducing reliance on Washington influence and paving the way for a more stable South Asia.
The stakes couldn’t be higher. A nuclear flashpoint— born of shortsighted strategies and reckless ambition—is a global nightmare the world simply cannot afford.