The border between Pakistan and Afghanistan

ISLAMABAD: Afghan officials recently raised objections to the use of the word 'border' in a statement Qatar issued in the wake of a ceasefire agreement between Pakistan and Afghanistan in Doha. 

The border has long been internationally recognized as Pakistan’s western frontier, a position Islamabad has maintained and articulated consistently.

The Durand Agreement

The Durand Agreement was signed on Nov. 12, 1893, between the British Indian government and Afghan ruler Amir Abdur Rahman Khan. Negotiated by a British diplomat, Sir Mortimer Durand, the treaty demarcated zones of influence between the British Empire and Afghanistan.

Later, the agreement was reaffirmed three times between the British Indian government and Afghan leaders — in March 1905, August 1919, and November 1921 — leading to the recognition of the Durand Line as the international border.

Following Pakistan’s creation in 1947, it inherited the line — which runs from the Chinese border in the north to the Iranian border in the south-west — as its international frontier with Afghanistan, a status it has upheld ever since.

The 1988 Geneva Accords included an agreement between Afghanistan and Pakistan that underscored mutual recognition of the Durand Line as the international border.

Afghanistan, however, has periodically disputed what it recognized earlier. During an online press briefing on Oct. 19, 2025, soon after the Doha agreement, Afghanistan’s interim Defense Minister Mullah Mohammad Yaqoob Mujahid said: “We do not agree to the term ‘border’... the Durand Line is imaginary. Its future will be determined by the Afghan nation.”

Pakistan’s position: ‘A closed and settled issue’

In contrast, Pakistan — like countries around the world — has consistently maintained that the Durand Line is its western international border.

In 2012, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) stated: "The Durand Line between Pakistan and Afghanistan is the internationally recognized border. It is a closed and settled issue.”

In a more recent statement on Jan. 2, 2025, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar reaffirmed Pakistan’s position:

“The Pakistan-Afghanistan border is an internationally recognized border. Anybody’s statement cannot change the legality of the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. It is not up for any discussion.”

MoFA has repeatedly emphasized that Pakistan retains the sovereign right to regulate and defend its border, condemning what it describes as “unprovoked aggression” from Afghan territory.

Chronology of Pakistan’s stance

The Foreign Office has reiterated this stance on multiple occasions over the years:

2012: It described the Durand Line as “a closed and settled issue.”

2019: It rejected Afghan claims of non-recognition, calling them “irresponsible and unwarranted.” It reaffirmed that the border was defined under “all relevant international laws and conventions.”

2020: In response to Afghan objections to border fencing by Pakistan, MoFA said the activity was in line with international norms and aimed at addressing Pakistan’s security concerns without encroaching on Afghan territory.

2023: It asserted that any unauthorized construction by Afghanistan inside Pakistani territory was a violation of sovereignty.

2025: It reiterated that the border is “not up for any discussion” and rejected any challenges to its legitimacy.

International recognition

While Afghanistan is the only country in the world that refuses to acknowledge the Durand Line, the international community recognizes it as Pakistan’s legitimate western border.

In October 2012, the US State Department formally endorsed the line. Spokesperson Victoria Nuland said:

“We see this [Durand Line] as the internationally recognized boundary.”

More recently, in February 2024, State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller said:

“We support the territorial integrity of both Afghanistan and Pakistan within their internationally recognized borders.”

Today, the United Nations and all countries of the world, except Afghanistan, recognize the Durand Line as the internationally recognized border of Afghanistan and Pakistan in official maps and bilateral dealings.