Pakistan’s emphatic no to Afghanistan

[pakistani342]

Time to adopt creative interpretations of APTTA? I mean seriously if you want to pick a fight with Pakistan -- this is not the best time.

Article here, excerpts below:

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan has emphatically said no to a request by Kabul seeking permission to start direct trade with India via the Wagah border saying trade talks with New Delhi are currently off the table.

“We have asked Afghanistan to give us transit access to Central Asia.
However, they linked it with allowing them direct trade with India via the Wagah border, which is not acceptable to Islamabad,” Minister for Commerce Engr Khurram Dastgir Khan said during informal discussion with journalists.

 

[M.SAAD]

How would Pakistan get land transit route to Central Asia then?

 

[WAJsal]

How would Pakistan get land transit route to Central Asia then?

China.

 

[pakistani342]

How would Pakistan get land transit route to Central Asia then?

Well a few points:
1. How stable is the route through Afghanistan in the near term?
2. Afghanistan needs access to Pakistani ports far more than Pakistan needs access to Central Asia -- Bandar Abbas is simply not a deep water port.
3. Central asia is reachable through both Iran and China - The China route to the western of the CAR Capitals adds 600 miles (was it?)
4. The damage done to Pakistan's economy due to Afghan drugs probably outweighs the few hundred miles gained be an order of magnitude or two
5. The balance of power is overwhelmingly in the favor of Pakistan
6. But most importantly Pakistan does not need to beg for access to CARs -- Afghanistan needs transit through the CARs for its own northern access -- we should ask the CARs to ask Afghanistan for reciprocal access.

 

[slapshot]

In the end they will allow anyway. For now they are just being played by India. China and other central Asian countries can mount pressure on them. CPEC doesn't have any political agenda and I don't know why Afghanistan would like to loose the opportunity just because India is looking for its interest. For now lets just focus on original players of CPEC.

 

[pakistani342]

China.

On China -- Pakistan needs to hitch itself to the China ball game. I saw we invite the Chinese to build cultural centers in our cities and invest in cultural and language programs. Afghanistan is a distraction. If you really want to get wild -- normalize relations with India -- the world is receding from Afghanistan -- so should we. We really don't even need to -- Pakistan is Afghanistan's need, not the other way around.

 

[M.SAAD]

China.

And how can Pakistan do trade with countries like Nepal,Bhutan,Bangladesh etc. which are on the East of India ?? How can Pakistan bypass India to do trade with them??

Well a few points:
1. How stable is the route through Afghanistan in the near term?
2. Afghanistan needs access to Pakistani ports far more than Pakistan needs access to Central Asia -- Bandar Abbas is simply not a deep water port.
3. Central asia is reachable through both Iran and China - The China route to the western of the CAR Capitals adds 600 miles (was it?)
4. The damage done to Pakistan's economy due to Afghan drugs probably outweighs the few hundred miles gained be an order of magnitude or two
5. The balance of power is overwhelmingly in the favor of Pakistan
6. But most importantly Pakistan does not need to beg for access to CARs -- Afghanistan needs transit through the CARs for its own northern access -- we should ask the CARs to ask Afghanistan for reciprocal access.

I get it, so we're safe there..

Another question..

And how can Pakistan do trade with countries like Nepal,Bhutan,Bangladesh etc. which are on the East of India ?? How can Pakistan bypass India to do trade with them??

 

[Path-Finder]

Well a few points:
1. How stable is the route through Afghanistan in the near term?
2. Afghanistan needs access to Pakistani ports far more than Pakistan needs access to Central Asia -- Bandar Abbas is simply not a deep water port.
3. Central asia is reachable through both Iran and China - The China route to the western of the CAR Capitals adds 600 miles (was it?)
4. The damage done to Pakistan's economy due to Afghan drugs probably outweighs the few hundred miles gained be an order of magnitude or two
5. The balance of power is overwhelmingly in the favor of Pakistan
6. But most importantly Pakistan does not need to beg for access to CARs -- Afghanistan needs transit through the CARs for its own northern access -- we should ask the CARs to ask Afghanistan for reciprocal access.

I saw on a TV show that China is laying railway from western China to Russia and surely in the future there will be a route that connects to CAS/R.

 

[slapshot]

And how can Pakistan do trade with countries like Nepal,Bhutan,Bangladesh etc. which are on the East of India ?? How can Pakistan bypass India to do trade with them??

We need to look towards central Asia, middle east.

 

[Path-Finder]

And how can Pakistan do trade with countries like Nepal,Bhutan,Bangladesh etc. which are on the East of India ?? How can Pakistan bypass India to do trade with them??

I get it, so we're safe there..

Another question..

And how can Pakistan do trade with countries like Nepal,Bhutan,Bangladesh etc. which are on the East of India ?? How can Pakistan bypass India to do trade with them??

Do we need to trade there? why?

 

[pakistani342]

I saw on a TV show that China is laying railway from western China to Russia and surely in the future there will be a route that connects to CAS/R.

It is -- very true -- this opportunity comes once in a life time -- leave Afghanistan to the Afghans.

 

[WAJsal]

And how can Pakistan do trade with countries like Nepal,Bhutan,Bangladesh etc. which are on the East of India ?? How can Pakistan bypass India to do trade with them??

We already are trading with these countries

 

[Path-Finder]

It is -- very true -- this opportunity comes once in a life time -- leave Afghanistan to the Afghans.

They prefer their lifestyle and with their stubbornness bypassing helps

 

[ito]

China.

So India too can get to central Asia through China....so what is the gibberish your defense analysts talk of Pakistan's geographic advantage.

 

[M.SAAD]

Do we need to trade there? why?

We need to trade with everyone to improve our economy and they are good markets,you can't overlook anyone , Bangladesh is a country with population almost equal to that of Pakistan .