Aimal Wali Khan, the President of Awami National Party (ANP) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, has urged the Pakistani government to address tensions with neighboring countries, particularly Afghanistan, through serious diplomatic engagement.

Speaking to reporters in Islamabad on Thursday, Wali Khan said the ongoing tensions are causing the greatest harm to ordinary people, especially those in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.

“War is not a permanent solution to any problem,” he stressed.

Wali Khan called on Islamabad to pursue a serious diplomatic approach to de-escalate tensions with Afghanistan and other neighboring countries.

Afghanistan and Malaysia have emphasized the need to expand defense cooperation, particularly in training and technical fields, the Afghan Embassy in Malaysia said.

According to the embassy, Shoaib Baryalai, First Director of the Political Directorate at Afghanistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Naqibullah Ahmadi, acting head of Afghanistan’s embassy in Malaysia, met with the Deputy Secretary-General of Malaysia’s Ministry of Defense.

The two sides discussed what the embassy described as “positive progress” in relations between Afghanistan and Malaysia.

The meeting focused on expanding cooperation between the two countries’ defense ministries in educational and technical areas.

Both sides also stressed the importance of further strengthening bilateral relations based on mutual interests.

The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) says Tajikistan will begin receiving weapons and equipment to strengthen its border with Afghanistan in autumn 2026.

CSTO Secretary-General Taalatbek Masadykov told Russia’s TASS news agency that member states have agreed on a list of military and non-military equipment requested by Tajikistan, but details of the supplies have not been disclosed.

Masadykov said security along the Tajikistan-Afghanistan border is a priority for all CSTO member states.

The Tajikistan-Afghanistan border stretches for about 1,300 kilometers. A five-year plan to strengthen the border was approved in November 2024 and is expected to remain in effect in the coming years.