Islamabad, July 6(ANI): Pakistan's dual policy towards the Taliban has brought 'diminishing returns and serious damage' to the country that once exported jihadis to all its neighbours, an editorial in a Pakistani newspaper has said.
While it was declared following a meeting between Pakistan's Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir and Afghan Foreign Minister Mohammad Umer Daudzai in Islamabad that both nations have agreed to devise a strategy to combat cross-border terrorism, the "ground realities hardly support this aspiration," the Daily Times editorial said.
"How can cross-border terrorism come to an end when Pakistan supports the Afghan Taliban and provides them shelter on its soil?" it questioned.
The editorial pointed out that it is these militant networks that have been consistently carrying out attacks against foreign and Afghan troops across the border in Afghanistan from their safe havens in Pakistan.
"The Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has found save havens in the border areas, inducing a process of reverse osmosis, i.e. attacking Pakistan that once exported jihadis to all its neighbours," it said.
"This situation is the result of a basic contradiction at the heart of Pakistan's security policy that purports to support the 'good' Taliban and prosecute the 'bad' Taliban, disregarding the nexus between the two," it added.
Deeply entrenched on both sides of the border, the 'good' and the 'bad' Taliban protect and support each other, therefore, not only Afghanistan, but also Pakistan is under massive attack, the editorial said.
"In this context, it is doubtful if Pakistan will be able to achieve its policy objectives in Afghanistan after the US troops withdrawal for which it has nurtured and protected the jihadi proxies, who are now running amok," it observed.
These objectives, central being the holy grail of 'strategic depth', have become all the more difficult since the United States is becoming impatient with Pakistan for "fooling it through double games all the years of its presence in Afghanistan," the editorial noted.
It also took notice of reports that the Americans are said to be talking directly to the Taliban, neatly bypassing Pakistan, due to their deep suspicions and mistrust of Islamabad's intentions, a development that should weigh heavily on the calculations of the architects of Pakistan's security policy.
"Pakistan's dual policy towards the Taliban can unravel the whole game plan for which Pakistan exposed its land and people to grave risks, whose diminishing returns and serious damage are becoming apparent now," the editorial concluded. (ANI)
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