By Mir Yar Baloch
A leading Baloch voice has called on Kabul to formally recognise Balochistan as an independent country, arguing that such a move would strike at the heart of what he describes as Pakistan’s long-standing policy of regional destabilisation.
Writing amid renewed tensions between Kabul and Islamabad, Mir Yar Baloch claims that Pakistan’s military establishment has, for six decades, pursued a deliberate strategy of undermining Afghanistan’s sovereignty.
He accuses Pakistan’s powerful army headquarters in Rawalpindi and the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) of fuelling instability in Afghanistan for financial gain and foreign patronage. According to the article, elements within Pakistan’s military leadership have long subscribed to the notion that “Kabul must burn”, reducing the Afghan capital to ruins in pursuit of strategic leverage and US funding.
The commentary draws parallels between the treatment of Afghans and Baloch and the actions of Pakistani forces during the 1971 war that led to the creation of Bangladesh, alleging a pattern of dehumanisation by what the author describes as a Punjabi-dominated military elite.
At the centre of the argument is Balochistan — Pakistan’s largest and resource-rich province — where separatist sentiment has simmered for decades. The author contends that Balochistan and Afghanistan are ancient civilisations whose histories stretch back millennia, predating the creation of modern Pakistan in 1947.
He further alleges that Pakistan exports militancy beyond its borders, destabilising Afghanistan, backing religious proxies in India, and advancing strategic interests tied to Gwadar Port — a key Arabian Sea port developed with Chinese investment.
The proposed remedy is stark: Afghanistan should formally recognise Balochistan’s independence. Such a move, the author argues, would unravel what he calls Pakistan’s “fragile federation”, embolden separatist forces in Balochistan and Sindh, and potentially redraw the map of South Asia.
He suggests that without access to Balochistan’s coastline, Pakistan’s Punjab heartland would become landlocked and geopolitically diminished.
The remarks are likely to inflame already fraught relations in the region. Neither officials in Kabul nor Islamabad have responded to the claims.
The article concludes with calls for solidarity between Afghanistan and Baloch nationalist movements, framing recognition as both a strategic and historic turning point in the decades-long conflict between the two neighbours.
