ISLAMABAD: The senior Pakistani diplomat held rare high-level talks with a prominent Afghan Taliban leader, hours after a deadly suicide attack in Peshawar heightened strains between the two neighbours.
In this sense, Afghan state media and Pakistani officials who spoke to Dawn, Pakistan’s Consul General in Jalalabad, Shafqatullah Khan, met Nangarhar Governor Mullah Muhammad Naeem Akhund in what was described as an effort to ease tensions and revive stalled communication channels.
The meeting came shortly after three personnel of Pakistan’s Frontier Constabulary were martyred in a suicide attack targeting the force’s headquarters in Peshawar’s Saddar area.
Furthermore, Governor Akhund, a senior Taliban figure considered close to Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, holds influence within the movement’s political and military circles.
He previously served in key roles during the Taliban’s 1996–2001 government and later oversaw military operations in Helmand.
He is also known to have been a confidant of the late Taliban chief Mullah Akhtar Mansoor and is regarded as an associate of Defence Minister Mullah Yaqoob Mujahid.
Moreover, Afghanistan’s state-run Bakhtar news agency reported that the Islamic Emirate “has a constructive stance towards good relations, cooperation, and safeguarding common interests” with its neighbours, noting that efforts to improve ties are underway.
In this regard, Islamabad has repeatedly said that Pakistan faces attacks plotted from Afghan soil, an accusation Kabul rejects. The TTP issue remains the core dispute between the two sides.
Governor Akhund emphasised the “goodwill, brotherhood, and historical kinship” between the Afghan and Pakistani peoples, saying that durable ties require mutual respect and structured coordination.
In addition, the Pakistani consulate did not issue a statement, and neither consulate officials nor the Foreign Office responded to media queries.
However, sources familiar with the meeting said the Afghan governor assured the diplomat that he had already taken steps to reduce bilateral tensions.
The Pakistani envoy briefed him on Islamabad’s concerns over recent security incidents.
