Pakistan, Afghanistan hold talks to end months of conflict

PHOTO CAPTION: Illustrative file photo — Black smoke is seen through a destroyed truck at the private airline Kam Air's fuel depot after a strike in what the Taliban said was a Pakistani air strike, in Kandahar, Afghanistan, March 13, 2026. REUTERS/Stringer

By Asif Shahzad and Sayed Hassib (Reuters)

ISLAMABAD/KABUL  -  Pakistan and Afghanistan are holding talks in China to try to end the worst conflict between the South Asian neighbours since the Taliban returned to power in 2021, both sides said on Thursday. 

Senior officials from both countries are meeting in the northwestern Chinese city of Urumqi and trying to find ways to end cross-border attacks, Pakistan's foreign ministry spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said.

The fighting has killed scores of people on both sides, mainly on the Afghan side, since it started in October. 

Islamabad accuses the Afghan Taliban of harbouring Islamist militants who launch attacks inside Pakistan. Kabul denies the accusation, saying the militancy is Pakistan's domestic problem.

Pakistan's Andrabi said Afghanistan would have to show "visible and verifiable actions against terrorist groups using Afghan soil against Pakistan".

The talks was being carried out at China's request, said Abdul Qahar Balkh, a spokesperson for Afghanistan's foreign ministry. 

They were aimed at strengthening good-neighbourly relations, trade ties and the effective management of security issues, he added. 

China, which also borders both countries, has been trying to mediate a negotiated settlement to the conflict between the allies-turned-foes. 

Kabul said more than 400 people were killed in a Pakistani air strike on a drug rehabilitation centre in Kabul last month before the neighbours suspended the fighting. A Reuters reporter counted more than 100 bodies at one hospital after the air strike. 

Pakistan has rejected the Taliban's statements about the strike, saying it "precisely targeted military installations and terrorist support infrastructure".

The talks will focus on a potential ceasefire and on the reopening of border crossings to allow trade and travel, Reuters reported on Wednesday citing sources.

 (Reporting by Asif Shahzad in Islamabad and Sayed Hassib in Kabul, writing by Shanima A; Editing by YP Rajesh and Andrew Heavens // REUTERS // Headline revised by Paul Garraty (OAF Nation))