GIVE AID PACKAGE TO AFGHANISTAN, OTHERWISE IT WILL BECOME A HAVEN FOR ISIS, IMRAN KHAN

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan has said that the United States will have to give an aid package to Afghanistan or face the elimination of a country that will become a haven for ISIS militants. 

 In an interview with the Middle East Eye, Imran Khan said it was important for Pakistan that Washington meet this challenge because of the conflict in the US-led "war on terror". Thousands have died in India, will once again pay a heavy price. 

 "This is a really critical time and the United States has to come together because people in the United States are in a state of shock," Hoon said

"They were imagining some kind of democracy, nation-building or free women and all of a sudden they found out that the Taliban were back, so they are very angry, shocked and surprised, as long as the US, the leadership We are worried that there will be chaos in Afghanistan and we will be most affected by it  

 

Imran Khan said the United States had no option but to make every effort to support a stable government in Afghanistan because the Taliban was the only option in the region to fight ISIS. 

 ISIL's regional affiliation in Afghanistan, known as the Islamic State of Khorasan Province, has fought the Taliban and claimed responsibility for recent deadly attacks including the bombing of a Shiite mosque in the northern city of Kunduz. Dozens were killed

Read more: Taliban Celebrate 20 Years of US War in Afghanistan

"The world should engage with Afghanistan because if they do it alone, there are hardliners in the Taliban and it could easily go back to the 2000 Taliban and it would be a disaster," Imran Khan said

'Concerned that the scattered 1989 Afghanistan may not return'

Referring to the post-Soviet civil war, the Prime Minister said, "If they leave Afghanistan like this. So my concern is that Afghanistan could go backward and become the Afghanistan of 1989, where 200,000 Afghans were killed during the conflict.

Imran Khan said that "Biden was not listening, we have not talked yet."

He claimed that he informed then-US Senators Joe Biden, John Kerry, and Harry Reid in 2008 that they were building a quagmire in Afghanistan with no military option, but that they did not listen

"Two years later, Pakistan's Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani gave the same message to US President Barack Obama," he said

"Unfortunately, they listened to their generals and you know what the generals always say, give us more troops and more time," he said

Read also: Blast at a mosque in Kunduz Province, Afghanistan, killing 55 people

"We were very pleased to see the Taliban take over Kabul peacefully because we expected bloodshed but what happened was a peaceful transfer of power," he said in an interview

"However, we also felt that we were being blamed for it 300,000 Afghan soldiers surrendered without a fight Clearly, we did not ask them to surrender," he said

In response to a question about the Taliban's comprehensive government, Imran Khan said, "This is not a comprehensive government, this government is an interim government

"Pakistan is working with neighboring states, especially Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, which have large ethnic minorities inside Afghanistan, to encourage the Taliban to increase representation," he said

"They need a comprehensive government because Afghanistan is a diverse society," he said

'80,000 lives lost in a bloody conflict between Pakistan Army and TTP'

The Prime Minister said that the ban on entry into government has been imposed only on members of the previous government who were involved in corruption

The Taliban should be given time They have made correct statements and they have no other option. What will we do if we ban them? (The best way is to encourage them to do what they want)

"However, if you force them, I can imagine, given human nature, that they will retreat," he said

He said that there was a lack of clear leadership within the movement on different factions and on some issues.

Read also: Afghanistan's economic challenges after the arrival of the Taliban and their solution

He said Pakistan was currently engaged in delicate and politically sensitive talks with the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), often referred to as the Pakistani Taliban

"The TTP and the Pakistani military have faced a bloody conflict on the sidelines of the war on terror in which more than 80,000 lives have been lost," he said

The TTP, which was ousted from the tribal areas five years ago, has resumed its campaign with fresh clashes with the army

The TTP has set two conditions for a ceasefire, Sharia law in the tribal areas and the release of prisoners, while the Pakistani government insists that only the Constitution of Pakistan applies in these areas

Imran Khan said in an interview that the TTP consists of 50 groups and is trying to reconcile with those elements who are ready for talks

"Now we are trying to talk to people who can be reconciled I believe that every conflict eventually ends up on the table," he said

'Condemns continued use of drone strikes in Afghanistan'

He said the Taliban government had told Pakistan that the TTP would not be allowed to attack Pakistan from inside Afghan territory

He accused Indian intelligence agencies of supporting the attacks during the previous regime in Kabul

"Now we have to talk to those with whom we can make peace so that they can surrender and live like ordinary citizens," he said

Read more: Defeat in Afghanistan is the result of 20 years of mistakes, says US military chief

Imran Khan condemned the continued use of drone strikes by the United States in Afghanistan

"This is the worst way to fight terrorism, drone strikes on mud houses in a village and expecting no casualties, most of the drone strikes have targeted the wrong people," he said

Asked about Pakistan's decision to allow the US to carry out ISIS operations in Afghanistan, he said Pakistan had paid a human and financial price since the US-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 

"No country has paid a heavy price like us, 8,000 Pakistanis were killed, the economy was destroyed and 150 150 billion was lost, we were called the most dangerous place in the world  3 5 million people  he said  Internally displaced

Imran Khan said it would be premature to say what the regional implications of the US withdrawal would be

However, he said that China is an emerging power that has stepped into this space and stood by Pakistan.

"Which country came to the rescue?" He asked. It was China that helped us, you always remember the people who helped you in difficult times.