US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said Washington does not want Pakistan to be targeted by terrorism, while acknowledging Islamabad’s concern that attacks on the country are being launched from Afghan soil and that the Taliban have not done enough to stop them. He added that the US would step in if it could play a “productive role.”
Rubio made the remarks on October 31 at a press availability at the end of the G20 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Atlanta, Georgia, in reply to a question about the conflict between Pakistan and the Taliban government in Afghanistan.
What Rubio Said About Pakistan and the Taliban
A reporter asked Rubio how the US viewed the tensions in the region, noting that Russia had stepped in to mediate between the two neighbours. Rubio replied:
“Pakistan is concerned about terrorist attacks that are being sponsored from the territory of Afghanistan. They feel as if the Taliban has not done enough to constrain those attacks, and they’ve taken action against it. We obviously have heard those concerns on their part. We obviously don’t want them to be targeted for terrorism.”
He went on to say, “So if there’s a productive role for us to play, we would play it. We don’t necessarily have the closest relationship with the Taliban, as you can imagine.”
Rubio ended his answer by saying the US had “seen some of those attacks that they point to” and that “we’re against terrorism no matter where it emanates from and who it targets.”
Why This Matters for Pakistan
The comments are significant because they come from the top US diplomat, on a global stage, and they line up closely with the case Pakistan has been making for over a year: that groups like the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) are using Afghan territory to carry out attacks inside the country.
At the same time, Rubio stopped short of announcing any new US step. He offered help only if Washington could be useful, and openly admitted that the US has limited ties with the Taliban government. In simple terms, this is political support for Pakistan’s position, not a commitment to act.
The remarks also come less than a week after Rubio said the US wants more influence over Pakistan, a sign that Islamabad has moved higher up on Washington’s agenda.
Where Pakistan-Afghanistan Talks Stand
Several countries have already tried to calm tensions between Islamabad and Kabul.
Qatar and Turkiye brokered a ceasefire in Doha last October, but follow-up talks in Istanbul collapsed the following month. Saudi Arabia also hosted discussions, and China held talks between the two sides in Urumqi in April this year. None of these efforts settled the core dispute over terrorist groups operating from Afghanistan.
Earlier this year, Pakistan paused Operation Ghazab lil-Haq against Afghanistan, but cross-border strikes have continued since. After an attack in Kohat on September 18, Pakistan struck Afghan territory on September 24 and again on October 1.
Russia, the only country to formally recognise the Taliban government, has offered to help mediate if both sides ask. However, the Moscow Format meeting on Afghanistan on October 5 ended without a joint statement because the Pakistani and Afghan delegations could not agree on wording about terrorist networks.
Pakistan has said that it is not shying away from dialogue, but that talks “will not be unconditional.”
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