Rawalpindi, November 1,2026: Director General Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry has warned that the Afghan Taliban lack the capacity to absorb the consequences of any military response Pakistan may undertake against threats emanating from Afghan territory.
In an interview with Reuters, the military spokesperson said Pakistan had the capability to counter threats from the Afghan Taliban, including potential drone attacks, and was prepared to respond to any attempt to test its operational readiness.
“Whatever they want to send, they can; they may try. We have the capability to take them on,” he said.
“They don’t have, I think, the capability to then absorb the punishment that we can put on them,” he added.
Responding to questions about the potential use of drones by the Afghan Taliban, Lt Gen Chaudhry said whatever drone capabilities the group possessed were not indigenous and that such technology was being provided by its sponsors.
He also described India as Pakistan’s “biggest terror sponsor” and alleged that the Afghan Taliban and militant groups operating against Pakistan were acting as Indian proxies.
Referring to the previous conflict between Pakistan and India, he said New Delhi had deployed dozens of sophisticated drones, which Pakistan had successfully intercepted and neutralised.
“We turned them into dust everywhere,” he said, adding that Pakistan had since further enhanced its operational preparedness.
The ISPR chief also accused the Afghan Taliban regime of harbouring terrorist leaders and allowing militant organisations to operate from Afghan territory against Pakistan.
He maintained that Islamabad was not seeking Afghanistan’s isolation and remained open to engagement with Kabul, but expected the Taliban administration to act responsibly as a state and prevent the use of its territory for terrorism.
“We only ask you that don’t support terrorism inside Pakistan. Stop harbouring the terrorist leaders,” he said.
He alleged that militant formations were entering Pakistan from Afghanistan and receiving weapons there, adding that Afghan nationals and even personnel associated with the Taliban regime had been found among groups involved in attacks against Pakistan.
“If you do it, then there will be a cost,” he warned, adding that Pakistan had a clear strategy and the capability to impose that cost.
Rejecting suggestions that Afghanistan should be isolated, Lt Gen Chaudhry called for greater international and regional engagement with the Taliban administration to encourage it to fulfil its responsibilities as a state.
He also rejected allegations that Pakistan was hosting or coordinating groups opposed to the Afghan Taliban.
“What Afghanistan is producing right now, it has only two products: terrorism and drugs,” he said, warning that both posed threats to regional and international security.
The spokesperson said Pakistan had no intention of dictating Afghanistan’s system of governance, stressing that the country’s political future was for the Afghan people to decide. However, he maintained that no state could tolerate armed groups, militias and mercenaries operating from its territory.
Discussing the changing nature of warfare, the ISPR chief said the Pakistan Army was adapting its capabilities to emerging conventional and non-contact threats, including drones and cyber technologies.
He said the growing availability of non-contact warfare capabilities to non-state actors had created new security challenges, requiring countries to reassess their defence and security arrangements.
Asked whether the military was using artificial intelligence to identify targets in Afghanistan, Lt Gen Chaudhry declined to disclose operational details.
“I cannot go into specifics [about] how we are using AI, how we are using quantum technology, how we are using cyber technology, or how we are using multiple other technologies,” he said.
“But we are using all sorts of technologies. We are a technology-savvy army,” he added.
