Stakes are high as second round of Pak-Afghan talks gets under way in Istanbul
The second round of talks between Pakistan and Afghanistan has got underway at Istanbul in Turkey, reported 24NewsHD TV channel on Saturday.
The first round was held in Doha, Qatar, which had resulted in a ceasefire between both countries.
Sources have told the 24News TV channel that a seven-member Pakistani delegation, comprising senior security, intelligence and Foreign Ministry officials, is participating in the talks, while the Afghan side is being led by the country’s deputy interior minister Haji Najeeb.
Three important points will come under discussion in today’s negotiations: the first and the foremost is the introduction of a system through which the entry of militants in Pakistan could be stopped; the second point is to make sure that the Taliban regime keeps the promises it made to Pakistan and both countries respect each other’s sovereignty, and the third point is to remove barriers in the way of trade between the two countries, the return of Afghan refugees and to ensure that both Afghanistan and Pakistan don’t use each other’s domestic issues for political purposes.
Both parties will also ponder over reaching a long-term agreement, sources said, adding that Pakistan will reiterate its demand that the Afghan government rein in the militants operating from the Afghan soil namely Fitnatul Khawarij, Fitnatul Hindustan and other militants.
They informed that Pakistani side would show complete seriousness in the second round as well.
It is encouraging that no major incident of terrorism took place following the Doha talks.
They informed that despite the fact that both countries had signed a document after talks in Qatari capital, the Taliban are reluctant to call it a written agreement.
Pakistan Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tahir Hussain Andrabi told reporters in Islamabad that the Istanbul round aims to establish a "concrete and verifiable monitoring mechanism" to curb cross-border terrorism.
"We welcome the agreement between Pakistan and Afghanistan finalised in Doha, Qatar, on 19 October 2025 as a first step in ensuring regional peace and stability," said Andrabi.
Kabul also confirmed the meeting in Istanbul.
Afghan interim administration spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said its delegation is led by Mawlawi Rahmatullah Najeeb, deputy minister at the Ministry of Interior.
"The remaining issues (with Pakistan) will be discussed in the meeting," Mujahid said on X. The Afghan delegation left Kabul for Istanbul, he added.
After days of deadly border clashes, last week Doha hosted talks between Islamabad and Kabul, mediated by Qatar and Türkiye, and the two sides reached a ceasefire which is currently in place.
Pakistan's Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Andrabi, also expressed Pakistan’s deep appreciation for the "constructive role" played by Qatar and Türkiye in facilitating dialogue between the two sides.
The ceasefire agreed in Doha has largely held, with no major terrorist attacks reported since. “We are taking part in the second round of talks in Istanbul with the same sincerity of purpose, with the same sincerity of intent with which we participated in Doha,” the Pakistan FO spokesman said.
The Istanbul round offers an opportunity to move from temporary calm towards a structured, verifiable peace framework with mechanisms for monitoring, verification and sustained dialogue through technical committees.
Turkish officials have indicated that a technical committee in Istanbul will review details of the ceasefire, including terrorism, migration and border security.
In essence, Doha produced the political breakthrough, while Istanbul is expected to operationalise it by defining what constitutes cross-border terrorism, how violations will be verified and how disputes will be resolved.
For Pakistan, Turkiye represents a trusted partner capable of designing a mechanism that both sides can rely on, shifting the peace process from ad hoc diplomacy to institutionalised peace-building.
In Istanbul, Pakistan is expected to seek concrete and verifiable commitments from the Afghan side to eliminate the TTP threat from its territory.
The agenda includes dismantling known TTP sanctuaries, arresting or expelling key figures and defining clear timelines and benchmarks for measurable action such as raids, arrests and destruction of safe houses.
To ensure implementation, Islamabad plans to propose mechanisms for intelligence-sharing, cross-border coordination and real-time monitoring of militant movements and financing.
Pakistan also supports establishing a third-party oversight structure, potentially co-chaired by Turkiye and Qatar, to verify progress and address non-compliance.
Additional priorities will include securing Afghan assurances against providing safe havens to hostile groups, strengthening border control, ensuring financial transparency on militant funding and holding regular review meetings to assess compliance.
Transcript of the Weekly Press Briefing by the Spokesperson, Friday October 24,2025 https://t.co/9tsABLEtYm pic.twitter.com/v0Oae5XApy
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Reporters: Anwer Abbas, Rozeena Ali and Hashir Warraich/Agencies