WASHINGTON, Aug 28: Any sustainable solution in Afghanistan must include Pakistan, a senior Republican Senator has said.
“We all must remember (that) Pakistan is a nuclear-armed nation, and there is a Pakistan version of the Taliban who wishes to topple the Pakistani government and military,” Senator Lindsay Graham tweeted, in an apparent reference to Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
Therefore, “any sustainable solution in Afghanistan must include Pakistan,” he said, adding that these are “very dangerous times”.
The TTP, commonly known as Pakistani Taliban, is a banned militant group based along the Afghan-Pakistan border. It has carried out a number of major terror attacks across Pakistan and reportedly been using Afghan soil to plot terrorist attacks in that country. Several hardcore TTP terrorists have been reportedly released by the Taliban in Afghanistan after they seized Kabul.
Graham said he spoke with the US Ambassador to Pakistan about the situation in Afghanistan.
“Very much appreciate the efforts of the Pakistani government to assist with the evacuation of US citizens, our allies, and other nations,” he said.
Meanwhile, Congressman Mike Waltz and Senator Lindsey Graham in a joint statement urged President Joe Biden to recognise the opposition forces in the Panjshir Valley.
“After speaking with Afghan Vice President Amrullah Saleh and representatives of Ahmad Massoud, we are calling on the Biden administration to recognise these leaders as the legitimate government representatives of Afghanistan. We ask the Biden administration to recognise that the Afghan Constitution is still intact, and the Afghan Taliban takeover is illegal,” they said.
These leaders chose to stay and fight for the freedoms of the Afghan people and oppose extremism. They have established a safe haven in the Panjshir Valley for Americans left behind, US allies, and those seeking freedom from Afghan Taliban rule, the lawmakers noted.
“They will also be on the front lines in the fight against global Islamic Extremism, which will continue to plot attacks against the West in the wake of our withdrawal from the region,” they said.
Demanding that President Biden should designate the Afghan Taliban as a foreign terrorist organisation, the lawmakers urged him to “publicly support Congressional efforts to stand with our friends in the Panjshir Valley who will serve as a bulwark against regional terror”. (PTI)
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