Taliban's Return Is Victory For Hardliners In Pak Government: US Senator
NDTV
US Senator Mike Rounds said Pakistan was considering the Taliban government as a partner to counter India.
The role of Pakistan in enabling the Taliban is a victory for the hardliners in the country's government, a top American lawmaker has said, asserting that the unfolding developments in Afghanistan and the role being played by Islamabad in Kabul are not sending a good message to India.
Republican Senator Marco Rubio, during a Congressional hearing on Afghanistan on Thursday, said multiple US administrations were guilty of ignoring Pakistan's role in helping the Taliban to regroup, as other US senators expressed concern over the “double dealing” of Islamabad.
“India … I know that there was an announcement today there'll be a meeting of the Quad fairly soon, which is a good development, except that the Indo-Pacific region, if you are India, you're looking at this and saying, ‘If the United States allowed Pakistan to unravel their standing," he said.
“Because the Pakistani role in all this - and I think multiple administrations are guilty of ignoring it. The Pakistani role in enabling the Taliban is ultimately a victory for those pro-Taliban hardliners in the Pakistani government,” Marc Rubio told Antony Blinken.
