Bangladesh, Jan. 31 -- South Asias next potential pressure point may lie not along the Line of Control in Kashmir, but westward, along the volatile Afghanistan–Pakistan border. This frontier is quickly emerging as a central driver of regional instability.

As expert Michael Kugelman recently noted, an underreported conflict is gaining momentum between Pakistan authorities in Islamabad and the Taliban government in Kabul. It is centered on Pakistans claims that Kabul tolerates, if not outright supports, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants operating against Islamabad. This confrontation now risks even eclipsing the traditional India–Pakistan rivalry as the regions most explosive security dilemma.

The data is telling. Ter...