On Wednesday, Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said the US withdrawal from Afghanistan “is not responsible or orderly.”
“We have been constantly saying, Pakistan, I have been saying in my commitments, that withdrawal is inevitable, make sure it is a responsible and orderly withdrawal,” Qureshi told Britain’s Sky News during an interview.
“And what did we see on the TV screens?” the interviewer asked Qureshi.
“She was not responsible or ordered. You see, why was there such a rush? Qureshi replied.
The foreign minister’s comments come two days after the final U.S. troops were evacuated from Afghanistan, ending America’s longest war after 20 years of military involvement.
Qureshi said peace negotiations should have been advanced “along with the withdrawal so that there is no sense of insecurity or anxiety.”
He also said the international community had made a mistake in leaving the Afghan people in the 1990s. When asked what would happen if this mistake were made again, Qureshi replied that “it could lead to a civil war.”
“This can become chaotic, there can be anarchy and this will give space to the organizations that everyone fears. The international terrorist organization does not want its footprint to grow in Afghanistan, “he added.
When asked if he believed people should have sympathy for the Taliban, Qureshi said “they should have learned from their mistakes.”
“And I think the attitude and approach they are demonstrating so far reflects a different approach,” he added.
When pressured if he thinks they have changed, Qureshi said they should be tested.
Two Pakistani soldiers were killed when militants opened fire in an Afghan border district on Sunday.
The Pakistani military said it responded to the incident by launching its own offensive, which killed two or three attackers, Reuters reported.