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Pakistan Warns That Afghanistan Is Becoming ‘Hub for Terrorists’ and Poses Regional Threat

This photograph taken on December 29, 2025 shows a Taliban security personnel standing guard near the zero-point border crossing between Afghanistan and Pakistan at the Spin Boldak district of Kandahar province. (AFP)
This photograph taken on December 29, 2025 shows a Taliban security personnel standing guard near the zero-point border crossing between Afghanistan and Pakistan at the Spin Boldak district of Kandahar province. (AFP)
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Pakistan Warns That Afghanistan Is Becoming ‘Hub for Terrorists’ and Poses Regional Threat

This photograph taken on December 29, 2025 shows a Taliban security personnel standing guard near the zero-point border crossing between Afghanistan and Pakistan at the Spin Boldak district of Kandahar province. (AFP)
This photograph taken on December 29, 2025 shows a Taliban security personnel standing guard near the zero-point border crossing between Afghanistan and Pakistan at the Spin Boldak district of Kandahar province. (AFP)

Pakistan’s military on Tuesday warned that Afghanistan is becoming a “hub for terrorists and non-state actors,” widening its allegations to assert that its Taliban government is patronizing al-Qaeda, the ISIS group and the Pakistani Taliban.

Military spokesman Lt. Gen. Ahmad Sharif Chaudhry also told a news conference, without offering evidence, that about 2,500 foreign militants recently entered Afghanistan from Syria following the ouster there of former President Bashar al-Assad. Chaudhry asserted that the militants were invited to Afghanistan.

“These terrorists are neither Pakistanis nor Afghan citizens and belong to other nationalities,” Chaudhry said, adding that the reemergence of international militant groups could pose security risks beyond neighboring Afghanistan’s borders.

There was no immediate comment from Kabul to Chaudhry's claim. Syria’s nearly 14-year civil war ended with Assad's ouster in December 2024, but left behind a patchwork of armed groups on all sides of the conflict, shaped by years of foreign intervention.

Fighters from Syria have since taken part in other wars in the region and beyond, including Turkish-backed combatants sent to Libya and militants recruited by Russia to fight in Ukraine. Foreign fighters have joined Syrian opposition factions, pro-government forces and extremist groups such as the ISIS group.

Chaudhry's remarks came a day after Pakistan and China called for more “visible and verifiable” measures to eliminate militant organizations operating from Afghan territory and to prevent it from being used for attacks against other countries.

Relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan have deteriorated in recent months, with tensions occasionally spilling into violence. In October, the countries came close to a wider conflict after Pakistan carried out airstrikes on what it described as Pakistani Taliban hideouts inside Afghanistan. Kabul retaliated by targeting Pakistani military posts. The fighting ended after Qatar brokered a ceasefire.

Pakistan has long accused Afghanistan and India of backing the Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, and the outlawed Baloch National Army. Both Kabul and New Delhi deny the allegations.

Chaudhry also said Pakistan killed 2,597 militants in 2025, up from 1,053 a year earlier. The country recorded 5,397 militant attacks, up from 3,014 in 2024.

“Yes, this is a big number,” he said of the 2025 attacks. “Why? Because we are engaging them everywhere.” He added that Afghan nationals were involved in almost all major attacks inside Pakistan last year.

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World

USS Gerald R. Ford Aircraft Carrier Leaves Middle East

The USS Gerald R. Ford in the waters of the Eastern Mediterranean, Oct. 11, 2023. (Jacob Mattingly/US Department of Defense/AFP)
The USS Gerald R. Ford in the waters of the Eastern Mediterranean, Oct. 11, 2023. (Jacob Mattingly/US Department of Defense/AFP)
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USS Gerald R. Ford Aircraft Carrier Leaves Middle East

The USS Gerald R. Ford in the waters of the Eastern Mediterranean, Oct. 11, 2023. (Jacob Mattingly/US Department of Defense/AFP)
The USS Gerald R. Ford in the waters of the Eastern Mediterranean, Oct. 11, 2023. (Jacob Mattingly/US Department of Defense/AFP)

The USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier has left the Middle East after taking part in operations against Iran, a US official said Friday, leaving two of the massive American warships in the region.

The Ford is currently in the US European Command area of responsibility, according to the official, who put the number of remaining US Navy ships in the Middle East at 20, including the USS Abraham Lincoln and USS George H.W. Bush aircraft carriers.

The Ford has been at sea for more than 10 months -- a deployment that has already seen it take part in US operations in the Caribbean, where Washington's forces have carried out strikes on alleged drug-smuggling boats, interdicted sanctioned tankers and seized Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro.

A fire broke out in a laundry room aboard the carrier on March 12, injuring two sailors and causing major damage to some 100 beds, according to the US military.

The carrier has also reportedly suffered significant problems with its toilet system while at sea, with US media reporting clogs and long lines for restrooms on the ship.

The United States and Iran are currently in an open-ended ceasefire, but the conflict remains unresolved, with Tehran blocking the vital Strait of Hormuz waterway and Washington's forces blockading Iranian ports.

World

US Treasury Warns Shippers Not to Pay Hormuz Tolls, Even in Form of Charity

An Emirati patrol boat, left, is near a tanker anchored in the Gulf of Oman near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from a coastal road near Khor Fakkan, United Arab Emirates, Friday, May 1, 2026. (AP)
An Emirati patrol boat, left, is near a tanker anchored in the Gulf of Oman near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from a coastal road near Khor Fakkan, United Arab Emirates, Friday, May 1, 2026. (AP)
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US Treasury Warns Shippers Not to Pay Hormuz Tolls, Even in Form of Charity

An Emirati patrol boat, left, is near a tanker anchored in the Gulf of Oman near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from a coastal road near Khor Fakkan, United Arab Emirates, Friday, May 1, 2026. (AP)
An Emirati patrol boat, left, is near a tanker anchored in the Gulf of Oman near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from a coastal road near Khor Fakkan, United Arab Emirates, Friday, May 1, 2026. (AP)

Any shippers paying tolls to Iran for passage through the Strait of Hormuz, including charitable donations to organizations such as the Iranian Red Crescent Society, are at risk of punitive sanctions, the US Treasury warned on Friday.

The Strait of Hormuz is one of the world’s most strategically vital maritime routes, with about 20% of the world’s ‌seaborne crude ‌oil and liquefied natural gas ‌flows passing ⁠through it.

Tehran has ⁠proposed fees or tolls on vessels passing through the Strait, as part of proposals to end the war with Israel and the United States.

The advisory, from Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control, said ⁠the US is aware of Iranian ‌threats to ‌shipping and demands for payments to receive safe passage ‌through the Strait.

The warning came as Iran ‌sent its latest proposal for negotiations with the US to Pakistani mediators, a move that could improve prospects for breaking an impasse in ‌efforts to end the Iran war.

OFAC said demands may include several ⁠payment ⁠options, including fiat currency, digital assets, offsets, informal swaps, or other in-kind payments, such as nominally charitable donations made to the Iranian Red Crescent Society, Bonyad Mostazafan, or Iranian embassy accounts.

"OFAC is issuing this alert to warn US and non-US persons about the sanctions risks of making these payments to, or soliciting guarantees from, the Iranian regime for safe passage," it said. "These risks exist regardless of payment method."

World

NATO and China: A Slow Alliance Confronts a Fast-Rising Rival

People visit the BYD booth at the Beijing Auto Show in Beijing on April 30, 2026. (Photo by Adek BERRY / AFP)
People visit the BYD booth at the Beijing Auto Show in Beijing on April 30, 2026. (Photo by Adek BERRY / AFP)
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NATO and China: A Slow Alliance Confronts a Fast-Rising Rival

People visit the BYD booth at the Beijing Auto Show in Beijing on April 30, 2026. (Photo by Adek BERRY / AFP)
People visit the BYD booth at the Beijing Auto Show in Beijing on April 30, 2026. (Photo by Adek BERRY / AFP)

NATO was established in 1949 to provide collective defense against the Soviet Union, based on the principle that an attack on one member is an attack on all. At the time, US President Harry Truman also sought to anchor an American presence in war-ravaged Europe to ensure security and prevent a strategic vacuum.

The collapse of the Soviet Union, along with the socialist bloc, brought the Cold War to an end and forced NATO to adapt. The alliance expanded its operations beyond Europe, intervening in the Balkans during the Bosnia and Kosovo wars, then in Afghanistan after the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States. It also undertook maritime missions to combat piracy, including off the Horn of Africa, alongside intelligence-sharing and counterterrorism cooperation.

NATO has since built partnerships with countries beyond its traditional scope and broadened its definition of threats to include cybersecurity, hybrid warfare, and energy security, as well as, more recently, the challenge posed by China.

In sum, NATO has evolved from a purely European defensive alliance into a broader global security actor, largely driven by the United States, while still maintaining a central focus on deterring threats within Europe.

In recent years, the Brussels-based alliance has expanded its attention toward the Indo-Pacific region for strategic reasons that extend beyond Europe. Chief among these are the interconnected nature of global security, particularly in cyberspace, the need to ensure resilient and unobstructed supply chains, and the rapid spread of advanced technologies that increasingly diminish the importance of geographic boundaries.

FILED - 03 April 2025, Belgium, Brussels: A NATO flag flies in the wind in front of the NATO headquarters in Brussels. Photo: Anna Ross/dpa

China’s Rise

Another key factor is the view of China’s rise as a strategic challenge reshaping the global balance of power. For NATO’s 32 member states, up from 12 at its founding, safeguarding trade routes is a priority, especially maritime corridors in the Indo-Pacific that are critical to the global economy.

These include the Strait of Malacca between Malaysia and Indonesia, the world’s most important shipping lane, linking the Indian Ocean to the South China Sea and carrying roughly 25 percent of global trade annually. It is also a vital artery for oil and energy flows to major Asian economies such as China, Japan, and South Korea.

NATO member states express “strategic concern” over China for several core reasons. First, China is rapidly modernizing its military, particularly in areas such as missile systems, space capabilities, and cyber operations, developments that are shifting the global balance of power.

Second, and closely linked, is China’s economic rise, reflected in initiatives such as the Belt and Road, which provide Beijing with avenues to expand its economic and political influence across Asia, Africa, and Europe. This expansion risks creating dependencies among countries in or near NATO’s strategic periphery.

Concerns are also fueled by growing ties between China and Russia, particularly following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, which could signal coordination between two major powers against the West.

At the same time, an indirect competition is underway over leadership in fields such as artificial intelligence, telecommunications networks, and semiconductors. NATO sees technological superiority as a core component of security.

The alliance has concluded partnership and cooperation agreements with Japan, South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand, encompassing joint military exercises, intelligence sharing, and political coordination. However, NATO does not appear to be planning an expansion of membership into the Indo-Pacific, instead favoring flexible partnerships over a permanent military presence.