Marco Rubio Flags Pakistan’s Terror Concerns, Backs Diplomacy On Iran At G20 Meet In Atlanta

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington does not want Pakistan to be targeted by terrorism and pointed to Islamabad’s concerns over attacks from across the Afghanistan border. Speaking at the G20 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Atlanta, Rubio linked those concerns to the latest flare-up on the Pakistan-Afghanistan frontier, News18 reported.

“Pakistan is concerned about terrorist attacks that are being sponsored from the territory of Afghanistan. They think that the Taliban has not done enough to constrain those attacks,” Rubio told reporters on the sidelines of the meeting. Rubio added that Pakistan had taken action in response to the threat. “We don’t want them to be targeted by terrorism,” Rubio said. In separate remarks at the same event, he said US President Donald Trump preferred a diplomatic solution to the standoff with Iran and had not yet decided whether to resume military operations against Tehran.

Pakistan Border Clashes

Firing along the border has sharpened tensions.

Pakistan’s state-run Radio Pakistan reported on Friday that Afghan Taliban forces opened fire in the Angoor Adda area of South Waziristan on October 27, with the report describing it as “unprovoked.” Pakistani forces retaliated, the report said. The retaliation was followed by strikes that reportedly hit several Afghan Taliban border posts and military installations. The report linked those strikes to firing incidents in South Waziristan and the Parachinar area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Long-Running Border Accusations

The dispute is not new. 

Islamabad has repeatedly alleged that militant groups operating from Afghan territory are carrying out attacks inside Pakistan. Those accusations have been a core source of friction between the two neighbours.

The Taliban government in Kabul has rejected the charge that it allows Afghan soil to be used against other countries. That denial has continued even as border tensions have resurfaced.

Rubio On Iran

Rubio also addressed the US position on Iran.

He said Trump preferred a diplomatic solution to the standoff with Iran and had not yet decided whether to resume military operations against Tehran. Rubio made the remark when he was asked about the possibility of renewed US strikes on Iran.

“The President prefers not to approach the situation that way. If he did, he would have done so weeks or months ago. He would prefer to resolve it diplomatically,” Rubio said.

Washington’s Military Option

The military option remains on the table.

Rubio said Washington believed it had the capability to achieve its objectives if it chose to act, while making clear that the US wanted a peaceful outcome. “We have everything we need to be successful, but we would prefer to resolve this peacefully,” Rubio said.