Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, on July 26, 2025, publicly declared that Pakistan has “no objection” to the United States naming The Resistance Front (TRF), a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) and Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT).
Only days before, Dar was in parliament vigorously defending the TRF, questioning its legality and challenging proof of their involvement in the April 22, attack in Pahalgam which killed 26 civilians. The United States States Department, led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, on July 18, sanctioned TRF due in part by its links to its parent organization Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and for their claimed responsibility of the massacre, India’s deadliest civilian terror attack since 2008. The Indian government declared the US sanctions welcomed, underscoring their strong counter-terror cooperation with the US government.
Dar’s 180-degree turn comes as added global attention is being placed on Pakistan’s use of terror proxies, with increased calls for Pakistan to comply with international standards on terror financing. Previously, he claimed to have lobbied the UN Security Council to keep TRF out of any communications and identified TRF as non-conduct illegal and claimed that he would have to accept responsibility unless there was evidence. This calibration likely represents Islamabad’s position to try to take a step back while dealing with the prickly regional tensions and a global response to counter terrorism.
