As someone who has spent decades in the trenches of Pakistani journalism, I have witnessed the heavy price our country pays for the instability across our western border. While we spent today, March 10, celebrating a massive milestone with our 5G spectrum auction, a much grimmer reality was confirmed yesterday by the United States. Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s decision to designate Afghanistan as a State Sponsor of Wrongful Detention is a move that is as necessary as it is long overdue. For a veteran like myself, this feels like a moment of global validation for the frustrations Pakistan has voiced for years.

For far too long, Pakistan has tried to stabilize a neighbor that refuses to join the modern world. While we are busy building digital corridors and inviting the world to invest in our 5G future, the Taliban regime is busy practicing what the US rightly calls hostage diplomacy. It is impossible to ignore the contrast here. On one side of the Durand Line, we have a nation focused on 2026 and the technology of the future. On the other side, we have a regime using the same kidnapping and terrorist tactics they have used for decades. The US designation of Afghanistan as a Wrongful Detention Country is exactly what the region needs to see because it finally identifies who the real troublemaker is in South Asia.

Secretary Rubio highlighted the cases of Dennis Coyle and Mahmoud Habibi to prove that the Taliban would rather use people as bargaining chips than act like a real government. Dennis Coyle is sixty four years old and being held without a single formal charge. Meanwhile, the regime denies any knowledge of Mahmoud Habibi even as a five million dollar reward sits on his head. This is the kind of rogue behavior that creates a massive security burden for Pakistan. Every time the Taliban resorts to coercion or pressure over accountable leadership, the fallout hits our border cities first. We have had to reinforce our security and pour billions into protecting our people from the lawlessness that thrives under such a regime.

I find it particularly telling that the US has issued a stern travel warning against going to Afghanistan. This is not just about American citizens. It is a signal to the world that our neighbor is a source of global risk. Pakistan is currently working hard to promote itself as a safe, high tech transit hub for Central Asian data. We are laying the fiber optics and launching the satellites to connect the world. But it is difficult to sell stability to the world when your neighbor is being labeled as a state that sponsors kidnapping. By finally naming the Taliban’s actions as terrorist tactics, Washington is helping the international community decouple Pakistan’s growth from Afghanistan’s chaos.

This designation also supports our national stance on border management. For years, critics abroad have questioned why Pakistan needs to be so strict with its border. Now the world can see why. When you have a neighbor that openly disregards the human rights of foreign nationals to gain policy concessions, you have a neighbor you cannot trust. We have been the frontline against this instability for far too long. Marco Rubio’s statement that these despicable tactics need to end is a sentiment that every Pakistani who wants a peaceful future can get behind.

From an analytical standpoint, this American move gives Pakistan the diplomatic room it needs to prioritize its own interests. We no longer have to explain why we are moving ahead without Kabul. We are focused on a digitally empowered future with 5G connectivity while the regime next door remains stuck in the dark ages of international isolation. The Taliban has been warned that these methods will not work with the current US administration. This is a clear victory for Pakistan because it confirms that the international community is finally tired of the games being played in Kabul.

Supporting this US designation is simply common sense for any pro Pakistan observer. Our goals of regional prosperity depend on the rule of law. If the Taliban refuses to stop their practice of hostage diplomacy, they deserve the full weight of international sanctions. Pakistan remains a beacon of progress in the region, and it is time we were no longer tethered to a neighbor that behaves like a militant group rather than a sovereign state.

Ultimately, March 10 marks a day where the paths of these two nations couldn’t be more different. Pakistan is reaching for the clouds with new spectrum auctions and fiber links, while the regime across the border is digging its own hole. I stand firmly with the idea that the Taliban must release those they have wrongfully detained and commit to ending these criminal tactics forever. Our regional peace depends on it, and Pakistan’s economic success demands it. It is time for the world to see Afghanistan for what it truly is under this regime: a barrier to the very progress Pakistan is fighting so hard to achieve.

© Eurasia Review