ISLAMABAD: The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) is stronger today than in 2021 and continues to benefit from safe haven across the border in Afghanistan, according to a former US State Department official.
Speaking on Pakistan TV Digital's South Speaks with Saqib, Stimson Center South Asia Program Director Elizabeth Threlkeld, a former Foreign Service Officer who served in Peshawar, said the group has consolidated under new leadership.
"TTP has been able to consolidate its support, and of course also benefits from the safe haven that it receives across the border in Afghanistan," Threlkeld said.
On the Afghan Taliban's response to Pakistani pressure to act against TTP, Threlkeld said the steps taken have been largely symbolic.
"So far we've seen primarily cosmetic moves, relocating some fighters, but not the sort of crackdowns that would really be needed," she said, terming it consistent with the Afghan Taliban's history of resisting action against groups it hosts.
On US equipment left behind after the 2021 withdrawal, Threlkeld placed responsibility on the Afghan Taliban's own choices. "The Taliban had a choice in that moment... but they themselves chose to ensure those weapons found their way into the black market, into the hands of these groups," she said.
She also called TTP a threat to Pakistan. "I actually see the TTP as primarily a Pakistan focused threat," she said, noting its attacks have concentrated on security forces.
On concerns regarding al-Qaeda partnering with TTP, Threlkeld said real linkages are worth monitoring, though how they translate into practice "is something of an open question."
She said the War on Terror framework has faded mainly because Washington's focus has shifted toward state-based competition with China and Russia, not the Afghanistan withdrawal itself.
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