India Supports Afghanistan's Sovereignty Amid Escalating Border Conflict with Pakistan

New Delhi:

India has firmly supported Afghanistan amidst its ongoing border dispute with Pakistan, stating that Islamabad's practice of cross-border terrorism "with impunity" is unacceptable to neighboring countries.

This declaration comes as peace negotiations between Afghanistan and Pakistan in Istanbul have reached an impasse. These talks were intended to resolve the military conflict between the two nations.

"Pakistan appears frustrated by Afghanistan exercising sovereignty over its own territories. Pakistan seems to believe it has the right to conduct cross-border terrorism without consequences," stated External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal during his weekly media briefing.

"Such behavior is deemed unacceptable by its neighbors. India remains fully committed to Afghanistan's sovereignty, territorial integrity, and independence," he emphasized.

The military conflict erupted while Taliban foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi was on an official visit to India earlier this month.

Hostilities began following a Pakistani airstrike on Kabul, to which Afghanistan responded forcefully, leading to an escalation of the conflict.

Both nations agreed to a ceasefire on October 19, mediated by Qatar and Turkiye.

Despite the ceasefire, clashes between Pakistani military forces and the Pakistani Taliban have persisted in certain border regions, with Pakistan and Afghanistan engaging in further dialogue to address these issues.

Pakistan's Information Minister, Attaullah Tarar, announced on Wednesday that the peace negotiations concluded without achieving a breakthrough.

As the stalemate continues, Pakistan Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has threatened to "obliterate" the Afghan Taliban should any future terror attacks occur in Pakistan.

Asif also accused Afghanistan of acting under India's influence.

"I believe that the negotiations were sabotaged," Asif claimed. "The authorities in Kabul pulling the strings and staging the puppet show are being controlled by Delhi."

He further warned that if Afghanistan launches any additional attacks on Pakistan, Islamabad's response would be "50 times stronger."

Pakistan "does not require to employ even a fraction of its full arsenal to completely obliterate the Taliban regime and push them back to the caves for hiding," he declared.

Responding to a separate inquiry about potential Indian assistance for Taliban plans to construct dams on Afghanistan's Kunar river, Jaiswal referenced the joint statement issued during Muttaqi's visit. He noted that India stands ready to support Afghanistan's efforts toward sustainable water management, including hydroelectric projects.

He highlighted the longstanding cooperation between India and Afghanistan on water-related matters, specifically mentioning the Salma Dam, also known as the India-Afghanistan Friendship Dam, located in Afghanistan's Herat province.