Pakistan told the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on Wednesday that terrorism emanating from Afghan soil posed the “gravest threat” to the country’s national security and sovereignty.

Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Ambassador Asim Iftikhar Ahmad made the remarks while addressing a debate in New York on the situation in Afghanistan.

In his statement, he highlighted Islamabad’s concerns about security, humanitarian, and socio-economic challenges emerging from neighbouring Afghanistan.

Briefing the UNSC on Pakistan’s counter-terrorism efforts since the Taliban’s takeover of Kabul in 2021, the ambassador said Pakistan had maintained consistent engagement with the Afghan Taliban, conducting high-level visits, facilitating humanitarian relief, supporting the transportation of goods, and announcing trade and transit concessions.

Despite these efforts, he said, threats persisted, creating mounting security challenges for Pakistan and the wider region.

“Afghanistan is once again a safe sanctuary for terrorist groups and proxies, with devastating consequences and mounting security challenges for its immediate neighbours, particularly Pakistan, and the region and beyond.”

He said Afghan authorities were failing to take concrete measures against terrorist groups, adding that Pakistan had witnessed a surge in militant attacks that were planned, financed and orchestrated using Afghan soil under their watch.

“Just this year alone, we have lost close to 1,200 lives to terrorism emanating from Afghanistan. Since 2022, more than 214 Afghan terrorists, including suicide bombers, have been neutralised in Pakistan during counter-terror operations,” he said.

“Terrorism emanating from Afghan soil poses the gravest threat to Pakistan’s national security and sovereignty,” the envoy said, adding that terrorist groups, including the banned Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), Al-Qaeda, the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA), and the Majeed Brigade, enjoyed “safe haven” in the neighbouring country.

He said Pakistan had successfully thwarted multiple infiltration attempts by TTP and BLA terrorists from across Afghanistan, confiscating caches of military grade equipment left behind by international forces in Afghanistan.

“These efforts have had a human cost, with huge sacrifices by our valiant security forces and civilians,” he said.

“Elements within the Taliban rank and file are supporting these terrorist groups and allowing them safe passage to operate with impunity and free will. There is also credible evidence of collaboration among these terrorist groups through joint training, illicit weapons trade, refuge to terrorists, and coordinated attacks against Pakistan using the Afghan soil,” he said.

“And not surprisingly, one detractor in the region, opportunist, and spoiler, has moved fast to intensify its sponsorship of terrorist activity through material, technical and financial support, to terrorist groups and proxies active against Pakistan from Afghan soil,” he added, without taking any names.

Ambassador Ahmad also urged the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) to strengthen efforts to prevent illicit arms trade and provide an objective assessment of border security, emphasising that cross-border terrorism was the primary issue behind border clashes between the two countries.

He also highlighted Pakistan’s efforts to engage with the Afghan Taliban, including recent talks held in Doha and Istanbul.

He expressed gratitude to the governments of Qatar and Türkiye for facilitating dialogue with the Afghan Taliban and called for concrete, verifiable action by them against terrorist groups.

He warned that failure to do so would result in Pakistan taking “all necessary defensive measures” to protect its citizens and sovereignty.

Ambassador Ahmad also highlighted Pakistan’s decades-long role in hosting Afghan refugees. He told the UNSC that millions of Afghans had been welcomed over the past four decades despite Pakistan’s own constraints.

“With conflict now ended, we expect that Afghans will now return to their country of origin in a dignified, phased and orderly manner,” he said. The envoy said Pakistan would continue to extend all possible assistance to the Afghans but also called on the international community to “shoulder its responsibility”.

He also noted Pakistan’s visa regime, saying that it allowed Afghans to enter the country legally for purposes such as education, health, business, and family visits. He highlighted that more than 536,000 medical visas have been issued since September 2023.

The envoy stressed that Pakistan sought a peaceful, stable, interconnected, and prosperous Afghanistan — one that was at peace with itself and its neighbours.

He cautioned that bilateral engagements should not be used by countries with negative agendas to destabilise the Pakistan–Afghanistan border or the wider region.

“No country desires peace and stability in Afghanistan more than Pakistan. No country has suffered from the consequences of decades of conflict more than Pakistan,” he said.

Ambassador Ahmad reaffirmed Islamabad’s commitment to work for peace in Afghanistan, emphasising that lasting stability could only be achieved through sincere dialogue with the Afghan Taliban, respect for international obligations, and strengthened regional cooperation.

He called upon the international community to remain engaged, provide humanitarian support, and assist in fostering a security environment conducive to long-term development and prosperity in Afghanistan and the region.

Recent reporting provides a stark backdrop to Pakistan’s warnings at the UNSC.

A report by US watchdog Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction has confirmed that billions of dollars’ worth of American-supplied weapons, military equipment, and security infrastructure left behind during the 2021 US withdrawal now form the backbone of the Afghan Taliban’s security apparatus.

Parallel assessments by UN monitoring teams and investigative reporting by the Washington Post indicate that some of these weapons have already reached the TTP, strengthening a group responsible for escalating attacks inside Pakistan.

A UN panel also reported that the Taliban continue to provide logistical and operational support to the TTP, reinforcing Islamabad’s concerns about safe havens for terrorists and cross-border militancy.