Tensions on the Edge: What’s Happening Between Pakistan and Afghanistan

13 November 2025

Paul Francis

Want your article or story on our site? Contact us here

Designed to Be Replaced: How Planned Obsolescence Fuels Waste in the Digital Age

The Streaming Divide: Why Pop Superstars Earn Millions While Most Musicians Struggle to Survive

Landmark Negligence Cases That Changed Personal Injury Law

The relationship between Pakistan and Afghanistan has always been uneasy, but in recent weeks it has taken a serious turn. Cross-border clashes, air strikes, failed peace talks and growing accusations have pushed both nations into one of their most dangerous stand-offs in years. For many observers, the dispute has become a test of whether the region can avoid another long and destabilising conflict.

Helicopter flying over a sandy desert with rocky mountains in the background. Clear blue sky, conveying a sense of adventure and isolation.

A Fragile Border and a Growing Crisis

The Pakistan–Afghanistan border stretches for more than 1,600 miles across harsh mountains and remote valleys. It is one of the most difficult borders in the world to control. Communities on both sides share cultural and ethnic ties, yet it is also an area long associated with insurgency, smuggling and shifting alliances.

Tensions rose sharply in October 2025 after Pakistan accused militants based in Afghanistan of launching deadly attacks on its territory. The main group blamed was the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an organisation ideologically aligned with the Afghan Taliban. Islamabad claims that the TTP uses Afghan soil as a safe haven to regroup and plan strikes. The Afghan government, run by the Taliban since 2021, has repeatedly denied this, insisting it does not allow any group to attack a neighbouring country.

In response to a series of cross-border raids, Pakistan carried out air strikes inside Afghanistan, reportedly targeting militant positions near Kabul and across border provinces such as Khost and Paktika. Afghanistan retaliated with its own artillery fire along the frontier, resulting in casualties on both sides.

Diplomatic Frustration and Failed Talks

The violence sparked international concern, prompting Qatar and Turkey to step in as mediators. Both countries helped broker a temporary ceasefire in mid-October, but the calm was short-lived. Within weeks, the agreement had collapsed, with each side accusing the other of breaking the terms.

Talks held in Istanbul were meant to restore dialogue, yet they ended in stalemate. Pakistan demanded firm guarantees that militants operating from Afghanistan would be disarmed or expelled. Afghanistan, in turn, accused Pakistan of violating its sovereignty with repeated air operations. Efforts by Iran to offer mediation have also yet to produce results.

This latest breakdown highlights a deeper mistrust between the two governments. Pakistan once saw the Taliban’s rise to power in Afghanistan as a strategic opportunity to ensure a friendly regime on its western border. Instead, the relationship has soured, with Islamabad viewing the Taliban’s inability to rein in the TTP as a major threat to its internal security.

Why the Situation Matters

The border conflict is more than a local issue; it has major implications for the entire region. Pakistan’s western frontier has long been volatile, and instability there risks spilling into its own border provinces such as Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. If the violence continues, Pakistan may face a surge of displaced civilians and renewed domestic attacks from TTP factions.

Camouflage uniform with Pakistan flag patch, "Special Services Wing" badge, and pencil in pocket. Hand holding a paper, suggesting readiness.

For Afghanistan, the fighting threatens what remains of its already fragile economy. Cross-border trade routes with Pakistan are crucial lifelines for goods, fuel and humanitarian supplies. When the border closes or becomes unsafe, Afghan markets suffer shortages and price spikes, deepening the country’s ongoing economic crisis.

Neighbouring countries are also on alert. Iran, which shares a long border with both Afghanistan and Pakistan, has offered to mediate out of concern that the fighting could spread or disrupt trade routes. Further north, Central Asian nations such as Uzbekistan and Tajikistan are worried about militant movements and refugee flows across their southern borders.

Even China is watching closely. It has invested heavily in Pakistan’s infrastructure through the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a flagship element of Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative. Escalating violence could undermine those projects and threaten Chinese personnel working in the region.

The Broader Picture: Security and Trust

Flags of Afghanistan and Pakistan on a detailed map with mountains, highlighted by warm sunlight, creating a diplomatic tone.

At the heart of the crisis is a question of control. Pakistan believes that the Afghan Taliban can restrain militant groups operating from within its borders, but evidence so far suggests that the Taliban either cannot or will not take decisive action. Some analysts argue that the Afghan leadership faces internal divisions, with hardline elements unwilling to confront groups that once fought alongside them.

Meanwhile, Pakistan’s military leadership faces pressure at home to show strength. Repeated attacks by the TTP have killed hundreds of Pakistani soldiers and civilians over the past two years. Failure to respond decisively could be seen as weakness by a population already frustrated with economic hardship and political instability.

Both sides, then, are trapped in a cycle of accusation and retaliation, where every incident deepens mistrust.

Possible Futures

If diplomacy fails, further escalation remains a real risk. More air strikes or cross-border raids could ignite a wider conflict that neither country can afford. However, there are also reasons for cautious optimism. Regional powers, including Turkey, Qatar and Iran, have a vested interest in avoiding another prolonged war. Their mediation efforts, while limited so far, may keep communication channels open.

Trade could also serve as a bridge rather than a barrier. Pakistan and Afghanistan have both expressed interest in expanding economic cooperation through transit agreements and energy links. If stability can be restored, these could offer incentives for restraint.

The real test will be whether both governments can separate militant issues from broader political disputes. Without that, the ceasefire agreements will remain temporary, and the border will continue to be a flashpoint for years to come.

Impact Beyond the Border

The outcome of this conflict could shape regional security for the foreseeable future. A stable Afghanistan benefits not only Pakistan but also Central Asia and even Europe, which has faced migration pressures after every major Afghan crisis. Conversely, a breakdown in relations could fuel extremism, disrupt trade routes and draw in larger powers seeking influence.

For now, the international community is urging restraint. The question is whether Pakistan and Afghanistan can find common ground before local skirmishes evolve into something much larger.

Current Most Read

Are we on course to become cyborgs?

Diane Hall
Jun 25, 2024
3 min read

Original Post date: 8th Oct 2020

If that sounds like a headline from the National Enquirer, it’s not.

AI Illustration of a future human and machine cyborg

The industry that creates wearable tech has boomed over the last few years. Fitbits, for example, are no longer a luxury but an essential item for anyone keen to improve their health.

For parents obliged to stand on the side-lines as their child practises their football skills—typically, early doors on a weekend morning—you can wear ‘smart’ clothes…hats, gloves and or fleeces/gilets with integral heating to keep you toasty.

Smartphones parade as fashion watches. Google Glass (smart glasses) allow you to scroll the internet whilst you walk. Gloves and suits exist that allow gaming enthusiasts to further absorb themselves into their games via virtual reality.

Think of the amputees with robot-like hands and legs – technology can go as far as an entire exoskeleton, almost like Robocop. According to the military, a technologically-enhanced skeleton-like frame that’s worn on the outside of the body would greatly improve someone’s prowess in combat. Apparently, the suit would make them stronger and more able to carry supplies from camp to camp; I presume it would also protect them from certain angles – should bullets hit their metal skeleton, they’d ping off in another direction, which means less chance of being wounded in gunfire.

All of these examples assume the user wears the technology on the outside of their body. For some people, however, they’re willing to go one step further.

Old school 1950's style Robot in a American Cafe

A recent poll carried out by cybersecurity company Kaspersky, which interviewed members of the public across Europe, found that some of them would be willing to endure a ‘body upgrade’ or enhancement. This could be anything from microchips inserted under the skin that holds their financial information and identification details, to supplies of preventative ‘smart drugs’, that could help make an individual immune to cancer.

How much tech would we be prepared to insert into/onto our bodies before we become more machine than human? Are cyborgs really only found in science fiction books?

The survey showed that almost two-thirds of those interviewed (63%) would be prepared to augment – or upgrade, as they prefer to see it - their bodies with technology. Our European cousins are also far keener than us Brits on the subject; only a quarter of British respondents entertained the idea.

According to Marco Preuss, Kaspersky’s European Director of Global Research, fans of technological/physical upgrades are “keen to test the limits as to what’s possible.” But at what point would they consider stopping? Could someone actually stray into cyborg territory?

Bionic eyes are already a ‘thing’, used to treat optical issues and degeneration. As is the 3D printing of certain body parts, e.g. hearts, lungs and kidneys, using stem cell technology and the advancements in printing. Body parts now grown in labs include fully-functioning ears, bladders…and vaginas.

Perhaps it’s easier to consider an artificial body part if your original one fails. And I can understand smart drugs in a world where cancer is as rife as it is. Inserting chips under my skin just in case I forget my car keys or bank card may be a step too far for me personally, particularly given that you…YOU, not your laptop or phone…could be hacked.

Would you be up for it? Let us know your take on things - Tweet us at @intheknowemag