Saudi Arabia and Qatar are stepping up diplomatic contacts to end the bloody clashes between Pakistan and Afghanistan, reported Agence France-Presse, citing a source close to the negotiations, BTA writes.
Today, Pakistan bombed several major Afghan cities, including the capital Kabul, after the Pakistani government declared "open war" on the Taliban authorities in response to an Afghan offensive that began a day earlier.
"Saudi Arabia, in coordination with Qatar, is seeking to reduce tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan" in order to "calm the situation and prevent its escalation", the source close to the negotiations said.
"Riyadh and Doha are maintaining contacts at the highest level with both sides and we hope that this confrontation will end as soon as possible", the same source noted.
According to Doha, Afghan Foreign Minister Maulavi Amir Khan Muttaki called Qatari chief negotiator Mohammed al-Khulayifi today. Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan also spoke by phone with his Pakistani counterpart Ishaq Dar, according to a statement from Riyadh.
Pakistan and Afghanistan have long been close, but sporadic clashes have erupted between them since Taliban leaders regained control of Kabul in August 2021. Islamabad accuses Afghan authorities of harboring armed groups that carry out attacks on Pakistani territory, a charge Afghanistan denies. Responsibility for most of these hostile acts has been claimed by the Pakistani Taliban movement “Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan“ (TTP), which adheres to the same ideology as the Afghan Taliban.
After fighting in October that killed 70 people on both sides, their shared border has been largely closed.
A brief ceasefire, confirmed on October 19 last year, was declared invalid nine days later by Islamabad, which blamed Afghanistan for attacks carried out by the TTP.