After condemning airstrikes it claims were carried out by Pakistan, Afghanistan’s acting defence minister said on Sunday that the Taliban government will not allow “invasions” from its neighbours.

The remarks came after the Taliban leadership blamed Pakistan for airstrikes that killed scores of people in Kunar and Khost districts, according to officials.

Pakistan has denied any involvement in bombing inside Afghanistan’s borders, although the two countries are “brotherly countries,” according to Pakistan.

“We are confronting problems and challenges from both the world and our neighbours,” Mullah Mohammad Yaqoob, acting Afghan defence minister, said at a ceremony in Kabul remembering the death of his father, Taliban founder Mullah Mohammad Omar, on the anniversary of his father’s death.

“The invasion will not be tolerated. That attack was tolerated by us. We allowed it for of national interests, but we may not tolerate it next time “he stated

When asked about Yaqoob’s remarks, a representative for Pakistan’s foreign ministry said the country wished for long-term engagement with Afghanistan to ensure peace.

“Pakistan and Afghanistan are two countries that are brothers. Terrorism is a serious threat to both countries’ governments and peoples, and both have long been victims of it… As a result, it is critical that our two countries work together in a meaningful way through relevant institutional channels to combat cross-border terrorism and take action against terrorist groups operating on their soil “According to the spokesperson.

Last Monday, the Taliban administration’s foreign ministry summoned Pakistan’s ambassador in protest of the strikes. According to local officials, the purported Pakistani strikes killed 36 individuals.

On April 16, 20 children were murdered in airstrikes in Khost and Kunar, according to the head of the UN Children’s Agency in Afghanistan.

There have been repeated standoffs along the 2,600-kilometer (1,615-mile) border with Pakistan since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August.

Pakistan’s military has increased operations near the Afghan border in recent months, exasperated by continued insurgent strikes.

To condemn the strikes, the Taliban administration’s foreign ministry summoned Pakistan’s envoy last week. According to local officials, 36 individuals were murdered in the purported Pakistani strikes.

Twenty children were murdered in airstrikes on April 16 in Khost and Kunar, according to the head of the UN Children’s Agency in Afghanistan.

There have been repeated standoffs along the 2,600-kilometer (1,615-mile) Pakistan-Afghanistan border since the Taliban gained control of the country in August.

Pakistan’s military has increased operations near the Afghan border in recent months, exasperated by the continued insurgent strikes.