Washington, Aug 29 (SocialNews.XYZ) As Pakistan's conventional influence over Afghanistan fades, Islamabad appears to be reverting to a familiar strategy: selectively tolerating terrorist groups. Analysts say terror group Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP) networks remain active in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan provinces, with some allegedly surviving because of tolerance or support from elements within the Pakistani security establishment, a report has highlighted.
The Taliban have accused Pakistan of allowing ISKP infrastructure to operate from its territory, citing the cross-border movement and survival of ISKP leader Sanaullah Ghafari as well as alleged terror camps inside Pakistan. In June, the Taliban said they had carried out strikes on sites in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa that they claimed were linked to ISKP, a report in online magazine ‘American Thinker' stated.
“Pakistan’s long-standing strategy of treating Afghanistan as an extension of its own security system has collapsed. For decades, Pakistani military and intelligence leaders pursued 'strategic depth'. They believed a friendly government in Kabul would give Pakistan extra space against India and prevent a hostile western border. That assumption no longer holds,” the report detailed.
“When the Taliban returned to power in August 2021, Pakistani leaders expected compliance. They wanted the Taliban to accept the Durand Line, suppress the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and remain dependent on Pakistani trade routes and patronage. Instead, the Taliban asserted independence. Relations between Islamabad and Kabul have deteriorated into border clashes, airstrikes, economic pressure, and mutual accusations of supporting terrorism,” it mentioned.
According to the report, Pakistani officials have increasingly adopted a confrontational tone, with Pakistani Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif declaring in February 2026 that “our cup of patience has overflowed” and that an open war had begun.
It noted that ISKP remains the Taliban’s most dangerous jihadist adversary. While the Taliban’s agenda is primarily focused on Afghanistan, ISKP follows the Islamic State’s transnational ideology and regards the Taliban as illegitimate.
Since 2021, the Taliban have waged an aggressive campaign against the group. Any Pakistani tolerance of ISKP could therefore undermine the Taliban’s counterterrorism efforts and increase the threat of a more capable regional terrorist network, the report stated.
“The Wakhan Corridor has become a central arena in this contest. The narrow strip of land gives Afghanistan its only direct border with China’s Xinjiang region. Kabul is building a road toward China. In May 2026, Afghan authorities reported that roughly 70 percent of the route was complete,” 'American Thinker' mentioned.
“A functioning corridor would allow Afghanistan to trade and move goods with China without relying on Pakistani territory. It would reduce Pakistan’s historic leverage over landlocked Afghanistan and potentially lessen the relative importance of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor for Afghan cargo,” it stated.
Citing information, the report suggests that instability in Afghanistan’s Badakhshan province and around the Wakhan Corridor could benefit Pakistan by giving Beijing grounds to delay direct connectivity and maintaining Pakistan’s position as China’s key western partner.
Source: IANS
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