Pakistan's defence minister has declared talks with Afghanistan have effectively collapsed. This comes after negotiators failed to bridge significant gaps. Weeks of border fighting have led to casualties on both sides.

Relations between the two neighbors hit a low point this month, with fighting killing people on both sides of the border. At issue is a rise in militancy in Pakistan since the Taliban took over Afghanistan.

Pakistan’s defense minister warned Afghanistan on Wednesday that any new “terrorist or suicide attack” by militants on Pakistani soil would draw a stern response, hours after talks between them in Istanbul failed to secure a peace agreement.

ISLAMABAD(AP) — The Afghanistan Cricket Board has withdrawn its national team from next month’s Twenty20 tri-series in Pakistan after it said three local cricketers were killed in Pakistan military strikes in southeastern Paktika province Friday.

The Russian Foreign Ministry, under Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, has firmly opposed any foreign military presence in Afghanistan during discussions with the Taliban government, cautioning that such actions could destabilize the region.