Pakistan's defence minister said on Saturday that he believes Afghanistan desires peace, but warned that if the two sides fail to reach an agreement during talks in Istanbul, it could lead to “open war.”

This comes days after both countries agreed to a ceasefire following deadly clashes along their shared border. Also Read | Who is Petal Gahlot — Indian diplomat who took down Pak's Shehbaz Sharif at UN?

The talks are meant to devise a mechanism to enforce the Doha ceasefire in the long term.

Khawaja Muhammad Asif said there had been no incidents in the four to five days since it was agreed, and both sides were complying with the truce.

“We have the option, if no agreement takes place, we have an open war with them,” he said in televised remarks from Pakistan , Reuters reported.

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