Pakistan’s Defence Minister, Khawaja Asif, launched a scathing attack on Afghanistan’s leadership, accusing Kabul of being manipulated by New Delhi.

He warned that any aggression directed at Islamabad would invite a response “50 times stronger,” following the failure of high-stakes peace negotiations between the two countries.

Appearing on Geo News’ primetime show Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada ke Saath, Asif alleged that Afghanistan was serving as India’s “puppet,” claiming that Delhi was orchestrating Kabul’s actions to offset its “defeat on the western border.” He asserted that India was engaging Pakistan indirectly through Afghanistan in what he termed a “low-intensity war.”

Asif revealed that Pakistan–Afghanistan talks, held recently in Turkey and mediated by Qatar and Turkish officials, had collapsed after repeated reversals by Kabul. He stated that whenever near-agreements were reached, Afghan negotiators had to report back to their leadership, which would then intervene and retract prior commitments.

He praised the Afghan delegation’s professionalism during negotiations but accused unnamed “power brokers in Kabul” of sabotaging the process at India’s behest. “India wants to engage Pakistan without direct confrontation, and Kabul is enabling that design,” Asif declared.

The talks, spanning from Saturday to Monday in Istanbul, were aimed at achieving a truce and formalising a mechanism to curb the activities of the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) operating from Afghan territory. The dispute over establishing a verifiable mechanism for counterterror operations remained unresolved.

Pakistan’s Information Minister, Attaullah Tarar, confirmed that despite initial progress, the Afghan side “kept evading the core issue,” and resorted to “blame-shifting and deflection.” Tarar noted that Islamabad had sought clear assurances against cross-border attacks, but Kabul refused to take accountability or commit to operational transparency.

According to diplomatic sources cited by Dawn and Reuters, earlier rounds of discussions had yielded temporary ceasefires, including one in Doha on 19 October. However, the Istanbul negotiations broke down without any substantive agreement, with both sides accusing each other of derailing the process.

The breakdown followed weeks of escalating clashes along the border, which left dozens of soldiers, civilians, and militant fighters dead on both sides. The violence had temporarily subsided after the Qatar-mediated ceasefire earlier this month, but tensions quickly resurfaced, casting doubt on the durability of any future peace arrangement.

In his closing remarks, Asif issued a blunt warning that any military provocation from Afghanistan would invite overwhelming retaliation. “If Afghanistan even looks at Islamabad, we will gouge their eyes out,” he said. “There should be no doubt that Kabul bears responsibility for terrorism in Pakistan.”

Based On India Today Report