Description: Cross – border clashes between Pakistan and Afghanistan were shortly reignited on Tuesday, with both countries shifting blame for the recent round of violence. The armed confrontations erupted in the Kandahar province on the Afghan side and in the district of Chaman across the border on the Pakistani side. The Afghan Taliban claimed that dozen civilians were killed by the Pakistani attacks while additional 100 wounded were dispatched to the local hospitals. Pakistan claimed that four Pakistani civilians were wounded without any casualties from the latest confrontation. Later on Wednesday, both governments proclaimed a 48 – hour long ceasefire which would be reportedly used to negotiate and engage diplomatically in an attempt to resolve the crisis without further loss of life.
Impact: The ceasefire between Afghanistan and Pakistan provides a short window of opportunity for the governments in Islamabad and Kabul to surmount their differences and work towards resolving longstanding bilateral issues. The armed conflict initially started due to Afghanistan’s support for terrorist and separatist groups operating in the border regions in Pakistan, and Afghanistan’s most recent strategic pivot towards India which has effectively shattered bilateral trust between the two countries. Border crossings would remain closed during the ceasefire, and they would be opened in case long – term concessions and commitments are drawn up from the negotiations. Pakistan would insist for Afghanistan to intensify its border operations in neutralizing terrorist and separatist groups operating in the Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa regions which have inflicted immense civilian casualties on the Pakistani side and destabilized the regions even further. Afghanistan would most likely attempt to reconcile ties with Pakistan while also entertaining other strategic venues such as India. Considering the military posturing on both sides, the conflict would eventually transform towards some sort of a proxy border war without international mediation and joint efforts to counter terrorist and separatist groups in the region.