Afghan Defense Minister Mullah Yaqoob: Pakistan’s Security Weakness, ISIS Defeated, and Calls for Balanced Ties With U.S., China, and Russia

Afghanistan’s Defense Minister Mullah Yaqoob has claimed that Pakistan’s “security institutions are weak, and to cover this weakness they put blame on Afghanistan.”

Mullah Yaqoob is the eldest son of Taliban co-founder Mullah Omar, and in the past he also served as head of the Taliban’s Military Commission.

The minister further stated:
“Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and the Baloch (separatists) conduct their operations inside Pakistan. They attack big cities hundreds of kilometers away from the Durand Line.”

He said this in response to a question regarding Pakistan’s repeated allegations that the banned TTP and the Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) use Afghan soil to launch attacks inside Pakistan.

Mullah Yaqoob asked:
“If they (TTP, Baloch insurgents) are entering from Afghanistan and traveling hundreds of kilometers inside Pakistan, then why aren’t they being stopped there? Whether it is a car bomb, target killing, or blast—it should be prevented within Pakistan. In my opinion, this exposes the weakness of their security institutions, and to hide that weakness, they blame Afghanistan.”

Pakistan’s Position

Pakistan has repeatedly warned Taliban authorities in Afghanistan that TTP and other banned groups use Afghan territory for militant activities. Pakistan has also claimed in the past that it provided evidence of this to Afghan authorities.

Earlier this year, Pakistan’s military claimed to have killed 104 alleged militants in two separate incidents while they were trying to cross from Afghanistan into Pakistan.

Mullah Yaqoob: "We Don’t Want Bad Relations With Pakistan"

The Taliban defense minister emphasized that exchanging accusations and propaganda is not the solution. Instead, “reality should be acknowledged, cooperation should be increased, and a good plan should be made to resolve these issues.”

He clarified that the Taliban government does not want strained ties with Pakistan, because neither country benefits from hostility.

“The unfortunate reality is that relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan are not as normal as they should be, and I am not happy with this situation,” Yaqoob said.



Do ISIS and Al-Qaeda Still Exist in Afghanistan?



When asked about concerns from several countries that ISIS (so-called Islamic State) remains active in Afghanistan and capable of launching large-scale attacks, Mullah Yaqoob replied:

“That may be their claim, created for their own purposes. In my opinion, they cannot provide any evidence or justification for this. Thank God, ISIS has been eliminated from Afghanistan.”

He added:
“Not only those groups that were a threat to Afghanistan, but also those groups that could use Afghanistan to threaten other countries—such groups no longer exist here.”

He insisted:
“I can say with full confidence that not a single inch of Afghan soil is under the control of any group that could pose a threat to Afghanistan or to anyone else.”

On being asked whether any branch of Al-Qaeda still exists in Afghanistan, Mullah Yaqoob replied:

“When America invaded Afghanistan and its forces entered, the relationship between the Islamic Emirate (Afghanistan) and Al-Qaeda ended. Those individuals who were from the Middle East went back. We have no information of their presence in Afghanistan now.”

According to him, under the Doha Agreement with the U.S., the Taliban had committed not to allow Al-Qaeda or any other group to use Afghan territory.

“We are implementing this agreement, and the Americans also have not been able to provide any evidence that in the last four years Afghan soil was used against them or their allies.”

Although Yaqoob denies Al-Qaeda’s presence, in 2022 the U.S. claimed to have killed Al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri in Kabul.

Commenting on this, he said:
“America made this claim (about killing al-Zawahiri in Kabul), but we (the Afghan authorities) have not confirmed it. We had announced that we are investigating. I am not a member of the investigation team, and I have no information about it.”

He added:
“Any country that feels Afghanistan could be a threat to them should come and talk to us. I am confident we can reassure them and clarify the situation. In my view, if some countries stop campaigning against us and do not obstruct our work, we can independently prevent any threat—whether to Afghanistan or from Afghanistan to another country. Foreign interference only strengthens such groups because they start seeing themselves as fighting for an ideology. We are confident we can fully ensure Afghanistan’s security, and we assure every country that they need not fear any threat from Afghan soil.






We Want Relations With the U.S. Similar to China and Russia





Responding to a question about the overall security situation since the Taliban returned to power, Mullah Yaqoob said:

“Security in Afghanistan is very satisfactory. Personally, I am very confident about it. If you compare Afghanistan’s security with that of regional countries, I think you would give Afghanistan high marks. Sometimes incidents happen, but such incidents also occur in countries that claim to have the strongest security. To me, these are not major security issues. Overall, the situation here is satisfactory.”

He revealed that Afghanistan’s army currently has about 150,000 personnel, and over time it will be strengthened and expanded further.

On whether Afghanistan now stands aligned with China and Russia, Yaqoob said:

“Our policy is to maintain balance among major powers. We should not ally with one bloc in such a way that we appear against another bloc. That is our policy. But in the current situation, since China and Russia want relations with us, we cannot refuse. We are an independent country and can maintain relations with any state.

We also want the same kind of relations with the United States as we have with China and Russia—but this depends on their (the U.S.) actions.