Representatives of Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban regime have resumed peace talks in Istanbul aimed at ending cross-border terrorism in Pakistan and consolidating a fragile ceasefire agreed upon after last month’s border clashes.

The two sides have already held two rounds of talks in Doha and Istanbul, while the third round began in Istanbul and is expected to continue for two days. The negotiations are being held under the mediation of Türkiye and Qatar.

Discussions will focus on reviewing the implementation of commitments reached during the last rounds in Qatar and Türkiye. Both countries are also expected to finalize the modalities of the monitoring and verification mechanism agreed in principle last week in Istanbul.

Following the previous round of talks, a joint statement issued by the Turkish Foreign Ministry confirmed that all parties had agreed to continue the ceasefire and establish a mechanism to ensure peace and penalize violations. Pakistan reiterated that Afghan territory must not be used for terrorism against Pakistan.

The peace talks follow border skirmishes between Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban regime last month. On October 19, both countries reached a ceasefire agreement in Doha, followed by further negotiations in Istanbul on October 25, which lasted several days.

According to reports, the current round of talks will address implementation details of the agreements reached earlier and unresolved issues, with Türkiye and Qatar continuing their active mediation efforts in Istanbul.