Afghanistan threatens to take Pakistan to UN over Taliban

After wooing Pakistan for more than a year, Afghanistan’s President Ashraf Ghani finally changed course saying he would lodge a complaint with the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) if Pakistan fails to take military action against Taliban commanders operating from its soil. Taliban has carried out a series of attacks in Afghanistan in recent months including in the capital city of Kabul.

Recent rise in Taliban violence has forced Mr Ghani to effectively end its efforts to engage Pakistan, which has been a major approach of his presidency. “I want to make it clear that we do not expect Pakistan to bring the Taliban to talks,” Mr Ghani said on April 25. He was addressing a rare joint session of the two houses of the Afghan parliament. He said that in quadrilateral talks over the past year that involved the US and China, Pakistan had pledged “in writing” to go after Taliban leaders who refuse to join the peace process.

“We want the Pakistanis to fulfill their promises in the quadrilateral and take military action against those who have their centres in Pakistan and whose leaders are in Pakistan based on our security organisations, the intelligence of our international partners, and the words of Pakistan officials,” Mr Ghani said.

“If we do not see a change, despite our hopes and efforts for regional cooperation, we will be forced to turn to the UN Security Council and launch serious diplomatic efforts,” Mr Ghani emphasised.

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