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Fragile foreign policy: Pakistan at the mercy of a new super power?
Global Village Space |
Ghulam Mustafa |
Gen Zia Ul Haq, for all his faults, understood Arab psyche very well. I recall his words to our Advisory Team in Qatar, “I am very pleased that Qataris have greatly appreciated your work. This respect will vanish the moment you ask for any favors or show any weakness.” His actual words were more emphatic and meaningful but cannot be repeated here.
Pakistan’s decision of joining an American-sponsored, Saudi-led, so-called Muslim coalition and sending one of its most respected four stars to lead it, is a mistake. It has started boomeranging already and there is every likelihood of it getting worse as the time passes.
We have lost the facade of neutrality, presented our broadside, have been shown to be an ordinary country, have lost face and aura of a power to reckon with, at least in the region.
Do we realize that right now Pakistan’s Foreign Policy is like a kite with severed strings, at the mercy of a building thunderstorm? American sponsored, Saudi-led Coalition on one side and China sponsored OBOR linkages on the other.
What happened to our PM, the leader of 220 million people, in the American-Arab-Muslim Summit, isn’t surprising. Was it downright insulting? Yes, it was. But we asked for it.
Read more: Pakistan’s unnecessary silence: Is the sovereignty under serious threat?
The essence of Dawn Leaks, repeated by the US President in his speech, continues to haunt us. It should be an eye-opener for all those who consider this aspect settled. We were held responsible for harboring and, in a way, supporting terrorists. Never mind American-led NATO failure in Afghanistan or the general mayhem inflicted upon the hapless Middle Eastern countries. Blame Pakistan, for it can always be coerced into doing more.
This kind of foreign policy disaster is pretty difficult to manage and needs a major overhaul. Can we do it? I believe we can if we come out of our self-generated fear psychosis. It is challenging, but nations have done it before. Primarily because their leaders were not like the ones we have imposed on ourselves. Their leaders weren’t afraid of getting their foreign-held assets frozen or taken over or weren’t personally obligated or under investigation back home (rightly or wrongly). Or a combination of all these questionable aspects. Arabs know how to get their pounds worth.
Pakistan’s flailing foreign policy
The pit is getting deeper by the day simply because it is a three-way balancing act for which we are totally ill-equipped and ill-prepared.
Do we realize that right now Pakistan’s Foreign Policy is like a kite with severed strings, at the mercy of a building thunderstorm? American sponsored, Saudi-led Coalition on one side and China sponsored OBOR linkages on the other, ostensibly thwarting American-led, Indian supported plans in the region, broadly define the complexity of current power game. We are the part of both. Can we handle it without jeopardizing Pakistan’s core national interests? I hope we can. Otherwise, our troubles will continue to multiply. Don’t forget that an irate Iran isn’t a very positive development.
Read full article:
Fragile foreign policy: Pakistan at the mercy of a new super power?
Global Village Space |
Ghulam Mustafa |
Gen Zia Ul Haq, for all his faults, understood Arab psyche very well. I recall his words to our Advisory Team in Qatar, “I am very pleased that Qataris have greatly appreciated your work. This respect will vanish the moment you ask for any favors or show any weakness.” His actual words were more emphatic and meaningful but cannot be repeated here.
Pakistan’s decision of joining an American-sponsored, Saudi-led, so-called Muslim coalition and sending one of its most respected four stars to lead it, is a mistake. It has started boomeranging already and there is every likelihood of it getting worse as the time passes.
We have lost the facade of neutrality, presented our broadside, have been shown to be an ordinary country, have lost face and aura of a power to reckon with, at least in the region.
Do we realize that right now Pakistan’s Foreign Policy is like a kite with severed strings, at the mercy of a building thunderstorm? American sponsored, Saudi-led Coalition on one side and China sponsored OBOR linkages on the other.
What happened to our PM, the leader of 220 million people, in the American-Arab-Muslim Summit, isn’t surprising. Was it downright insulting? Yes, it was. But we asked for it.
Read more: Pakistan’s unnecessary silence: Is the sovereignty under serious threat?
The essence of Dawn Leaks, repeated by the US President in his speech, continues to haunt us. It should be an eye-opener for all those who consider this aspect settled. We were held responsible for harboring and, in a way, supporting terrorists. Never mind American-led NATO failure in Afghanistan or the general mayhem inflicted upon the hapless Middle Eastern countries. Blame Pakistan, for it can always be coerced into doing more.
This kind of foreign policy disaster is pretty difficult to manage and needs a major overhaul. Can we do it? I believe we can if we come out of our self-generated fear psychosis. It is challenging, but nations have done it before. Primarily because their leaders were not like the ones we have imposed on ourselves. Their leaders weren’t afraid of getting their foreign-held assets frozen or taken over or weren’t personally obligated or under investigation back home (rightly or wrongly). Or a combination of all these questionable aspects. Arabs know how to get their pounds worth.
Pakistan’s flailing foreign policy
The pit is getting deeper by the day simply because it is a three-way balancing act for which we are totally ill-equipped and ill-prepared.
Do we realize that right now Pakistan’s Foreign Policy is like a kite with severed strings, at the mercy of a building thunderstorm? American sponsored, Saudi-led Coalition on one side and China sponsored OBOR linkages on the other, ostensibly thwarting American-led, Indian supported plans in the region, broadly define the complexity of current power game. We are the part of both. Can we handle it without jeopardizing Pakistan’s core national interests? I hope we can. Otherwise, our troubles will continue to multiply. Don’t forget that an irate Iran isn’t a very positive development.
Read full article:
Fragile foreign policy: Pakistan at the mercy of a new super power?
