Financial Times Editorial Highlights World's Inattention to Afghanistan Amid Taliban-Pakistan Tensions

A Financial Times editorial states that nearly five years after the Taliban's return to power, the world has paid little attention to developments in Afghanistan.

The piece notes that the Taliban have reimposed severe restrictions on women in public life and education, while relations with Pakistan have seriously deteriorated. During the US and NATO presence in Afghanistan, Pakistan cooperated with Washington while supporting the Taliban, believing it could control the group. However, ties soured after 2021, with Islamabad accusing Kabul of harboring separatist fighters responsible for killing about 4,000 people in Pakistan over the past four years.

Pakistan has conducted airstrikes across the border in recent months, the editorial says, as Western attention has waned amid conflicts elsewhere, including the Middle East war, which has also drawn focus from regional powers like China, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey.

The newspaper warns that the expanding crisis threatens stability across South and Central Asia and raises the risk of Afghanistan again becoming a breeding ground for terrorist groups.

It calls for intervention by major powers, including the US and China. The US should pressure Pakistan's military leader to stop cross-border attacks, while combining pressure and incentives to compel the Taliban to combat the fighters. Beijing, as an emerging power and Pakistan ally with strategic interests in Afghanistan, could act as a mediator.

The editorial emphasizes that despite past failures in ceasefires and the Taliban's unstable positions, the high risks mean the world can no longer ignore the situation.