Afganistan: Imran Khan warns of civil war in Afghanistan

On Tuesday, during an interview with the BBC network, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan said if the Taliban don’t take any action over the forming of a government, then there are higher chances of civil war in the country and it impacts Pakistan too. His main concern includes that if a civil war breaks out, then there is a possibility of a humanitarian crisis and the possibility of Afghan soil being used by armed groups that are fighting with the Pakistani government. Also, there is no control and if the fighting is going on, then it will take no time to become an ideal place for terrorists.

It is noticed that $10bn of Afghan central bank funds are preserved in foreign bank accounts, especially with the US Federal Reserve. Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi wants those funds to be dissolved so that the Afghan government’s institutions, including schools and hospitals, can function. Also, he said people are raising fresh funds to prevent the crisis but not the money that belongs to them. Also, preserving the money is not going to help in this situation, unlike dissolving it.

Between 1996 and 2021, Pakistan was an ally of the Taliban government in Afghanistan but has since recognized the armed group’s new government in the country, with Pakistani leaders saying any decision on recognition requires regional consensus and this recognition will depend on three factors, as stated by Imran Khan, who recently attended a summit of regional countries under the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). He said in the BBC interview that all the members of SCO take a collective decision on Afghanistan. Also, Pakistan would push the Taliban to form a political and inclusive government.

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