<p>Tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan have flared once again after a fresh round of peace talks collapsed in Turkey earlier this week. In a fiery statement responding to Kabul’s warnings, Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif issued a sharp and uncompromising threat.</p> <p>“If Afghanistan even looks at Islamabad, we will gouge their eyes out,” Asif declared. “There should be no doubt that Kabul is responsible for the terrorism in Pakistan.”</p> <p>His comments came shortly after he cautioned that the breakdown of peace efforts could push both nations to the brink of an all-out war.</p> <h2>Peace Talks in Turkey End Without Agreement</h2> <p>For three days, from Saturday through Monday, officials from Pakistan and Afghanistan met in Istanbul to seek a path toward de-escalation and long-term peace. However, despite intense deliberations, the talks failed to produce a concrete outcome.</p> <p>According to reports in Dawn, negotiators from both sides managed to agree on “most of the points,” but they remained deadlocked over one critical issue: how to create a verifiable mechanism to act against militant groups allegedly operating from Afghan soil.</p> <p>Sources familiar with the closed-door discussions told PTI that this unresolved point ultimately derailed the entire process.</p> <h2>Islamabad Accuses Kabul of Evading Responsibility</h2> <p>Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar confirmed that the Istanbul talks — aimed at achieving a lasting truce — ended without any breakthrough.</p> <p>“The Afghan side kept deviating from the core issue, evading the key point upon which the dialogue process was initiated,” Tarar said in a statement. “Instead of accepting any responsibility, the Afghan Taliban resorted to blame games, deflection, and ruses. The dialogue thus failed to bring about any workable solution.”</p> <h2>Fragile Truce Now in Jeopardy</h2> <p>Just weeks earlier, both countries had agreed to a ceasefire brokered in Doha on October 19, following deadly cross-border clashes that left dozens of soldiers, civilians, and militants dead. That fragile truce briefly restored calm — but the failure of the Istanbul talks has once again put the region on edge.</p> <p>Sources quoted by Reuters revealed that each side has now blamed the other for the collapse of negotiations, despite mediation efforts led by Turkey and Qatar.</p>
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