Pakistan to skip US summit on democracy

[LeGenD]

Not a surprise at all, a new cold war is brewing, going to the summit when China has not been invited would have meant siding with USA. I think the summit has been skipped on behest of China and Russia.

China is not a democracy - its leadership system is different. The event in question is World Democracy Summit. Logic, dear.

 

[Menace2Society]

Considering Biden has not reached out to Imran, it's the right thing to do. I didn't know this hasn't happened, its common courtesy.

 

[Imran Khan]

i think its shows decline of USA as super power too . countries like pakistan are rejecting offers .

 

[Rana4pak]

Pakistanio na democracy ki izzat loot lee..

 

[Tomcats]

This was not done at the behest of China as some people are claiming but worse, for optics, domestic consumption. According to diplomatic sources China has no issue with Pakistan attending the summit not one grievance reportedly. Snubbing the US while begging from it and the world to release aid to Afghanistan is not a prudent move and is counterproductive. I know that the meeting is not true to it's name that is fairly obvious but it's the gesture/action that counts, but alas IK want's to die upon this phone call hill, so be it.

 

[nang2]

Such a self-gratification event for US Democratic Party isn't really worth much to attend anyway.

 

[MM_Haider]

a counterproductive approach... some low key delegation would have made a statement. anyways IK should have attended .. we need new friends not enemies and also keep your friends close and enemies closer..

 

[Dalit]

a counterproductive approach... some low key delegation would have made a statement. anyways IK should have attended .. we need new friends not enemies and also keep your friends close and enemies closer..

The US is an enemy that you don't want to keep close to you. It is an enemy you don't even wish to your worst opponent. Good riddance to this garbage. Regional cooperation comes first.

 

[Ghessan]

Why should IMF, world bank or any other financial institution ease up on Pakistan? What have you done to fix the chronic problems? Give me one good reason, why should China jumps in and bail you out if you heaven learn what to do after 70 plus years why should the world help you?

We have over 200 crown corporations bleeding billions per year? What have we done to fix it?
We have a negligible amount of people registrar as tax payers? What have we done to fix it?
Your politicians that govern Pakistan have residence and bank accounts overseas, what have you done to fix it?

Oil prices around the world goes up except Pakistan why because of (poor people) ghareeb awam? Literally giving away billions in tax revenue just so Ghareeb awam driving around in 100 million rupee car can get cheap oil and somehow the word or China should look at us poor people and give us a break?

Countries around the world that have taken difficult but necessary decision have come out strong, I love it how you are cleverly claiming the old way of beg, borrow, aid and repeat is a better system and Pakistan being in debt is some how worlds fault.

No, no body should help us ease up things for us. rather nobody will, this is what i know very well and is an established fact.

now please if you could go back and read again why and to what statement i wrote that in reply.

IMO State of Pakistan is very well aware of the situation and the past experience while trapped between USA & USSR. Though the documentaries of that era show only a bright dimension of the events and stayed short of bitter truth about the consequential effect on Pakistan and how we were transformed to lapdog of USA. Till today we are looking for our identity back.

A good decision on the part of state of Pakistan:


Pakistan desires to bridge gaps between US, China instead of joining any bloc: PM Imran
Dawn.comPublished December 9, 2021 - Updated about 4 hours ago
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Prime Minister Imran Khan addresses Islamabad Conclave 2021. — DawnNewsTV
Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday said Pakistan desired not be a part of any political bloc but instead wanted to play its role in bridging gaps between the United States and China.
Addressing the Islamabad Conclave 2021, which had the theme "Peaceful and Prosperous South Asia", the prime minister said: "The situation is going towards a [new] Cold War and blocs are forming.
"Pakistan should try its best to stop the formation of these blocs because we should not become a part of any bloc."
The premier said the original Cold War between the US and the then Soviet Union had caused great loss to the world and so Pakistan did not want to get trapped in a potentially new one.
Instead, Pakistan wanted to "unite people" such as its efforts in cooling the stand-off between Saudi Arabia and Iran, he said.
"Both countries appreciated that we tried our best during a very critical phase where conflict could have occurred between them."
The prime minister added that Pakistan wanted to play a similar role in the current US-China relations and "stop their growing distances".
His comments come a day after Pakistan indicated that it may not attend President Joe Biden’s Democracy Summit, adding it would like to engage with Washington on the issue of democracy “at an opportune time in the future”.
Biden has invited around 110 countries, including major Western allies but also Iraq, India and Pakistan, to a virtual summit on democracy that is being held on December 9-10.
The US invitation had put Pakistan in a difficult spot as Washington invited Taiwan, instead of Beijing, to represent China at the summit. Russia, another major world power, was also kept out. China is Pakistan’s closest ally while Islamabad is trying to improve its ties with Moscow as well.
Policymakers in Islamabad are worried that not attending the summit would give India a free hand, which already has a strong influence in the US. But a strong Chinese reaction to the US decision to invite Taiwan made it obvious that attending the summit could seriously damage Islamabad’s relations with Beijing, a risk Pakistan could not take.
China and the US are currently undergoing a turbulent period of political relations marked by competition at various fronts. The US has also announced a boycott of the Beijing Winter Olympics over human rights concerns for which China said it would "pay the price".
Read more: China’s push on multiple fronts rattles Pentagon
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres warned of a potential new Cold War in September. He implored China and the US to repair their “completely dysfunctional” relationship before problems between the two large and deeply influential countries spill over even further into the rest of the planet.
'Futures are connected'
The prime minister, in his speech today, also commented on the regional situation, saying the biggest problem keeping South Asia "hostage" was the Kashmir issue.
He said his government had reached out to for peace to India but got "no positive response".
"Unfortunately we weren't having an interaction with a normal Indian government but the RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh) ideology ... and it is very difficult to negotiate with this ideology," the prime minister rued.
Pointing to India's domestic affairs and communal divides, he said the marginalisation of certain societal segments would have "severe repercussions" on Indian society and others.
"History tells us that when you exclude people then you marginalise [people] and then you radicalise them as well," he said.
The premier said in his view, problems solved through military means and wars were subject to "miscalculations".
"Those who decide to solve problems through warfare have two traits: they don't learn from history and they have pride in their weapons," he added.
"Miscalculations happen because of these two traits and weeks-long wars kept continuing," the prime minister said, pointing to the Afghan conflict and Pakistan's internal military operations.
'Pakistan, India should focus on climate change together'
Turning to climate change, the prime minister emphasised that both Pakistan and India were vulnerable to climate change.
"Our futures are connected. We both should focus on climate change together but till now I'm not seeing that seriousness in world leaders because their commercial interests are clashing with steps needed to stop climate change," he said.
The premier stressed that countries connected together develop as a region rather than individually. "There are two problems in our region: trade is low because of political differences and conflicts and secondly we are connected because of climate change," he said.
He said that once the Kashmir dispute is sorted, other issues could be jointly tackled as well such as smog and pollution. "Until both countries don't sit together, no matter how much we do in Lahore [to control smog] we will only solve half the problem," the prime minister explained.

Pakistan desires to bridge gaps between US, China instead of joining any bloc: PM Imran

PM says Cold War had caused great loss to the world and so Pakistan does not want to be trapped in another similar tussle.

www.dawn.com

yes, and it is good that he came to the front and clear things up.

 

[Ghessan]

I think this was correct decision. And more than China's exclusion, Biden's refusal to engage with Imran Khan made it extremely difficult to attend this farcical summit. Biden is a truly arrogant, self-absorbed old rooster! His insulting remarks about the Ghani govt--even before it was toppled--showed the guy lacks diplomatic acumen. Maybe he doesn't care much as his innings in life is ending. And, btw, this is a 'summit', meaning some very high level, if not the topmost level, attendance is expected.

it is all because US is changing its policies towards region, otherwise Biden knows what he is doing.
and that change in policies is not exactly about India at all but about region. you know deep state as always influencing.

PS. A recent video by a respected Pakistani blogger Saleem Safi says that Pakistan is being pressured into joining the American camp and ditch China and CPEC and even make compromises with India. According to Safi, time is running out for Pakistan and Pakistan has to decide. FYI.

Please spare, i don't want to politicize but Safi? com'on man such a good discussion don't bring in selling lot

 

[Dungeness]

111 invided, 80 participated.

 

[SaadH]

Good move given Biden admin refused to acknowledge the democratically elected gov't of Pakistan. Anything less would have been an extremely desperate case of acquiescence, something previously military and civilian gov'ts were used to doing.

 

[SaadH]

China is not a democracy - its leadership system is different. The event in question is World Democracy Summit. Logic, dear.

And US is a democracy, how naive...

 

[SQ8]

Sslong V and Z.

 

[Mav3rick]

Could it be China behind the scenes who convinced (don't want to say coerced) Pak to do this ?

Seems pretty well not thought out tbh.

Could be, or it could just be to please the new masters. In any case it is a bad bad decision. How can the fact that we need to beg the Saudis to park a meagre amount of USD 3 Billion with our central bank at an inflated rate of over 4% interest on an amount which we cannot even use to support the economy and the fact that the Saudis would not hesitate for a second in withdrawing that money if asked by the US to do so. Matter of fact, the US can simple move us from the Grey list into the Black list of FATF and deal a critical blow to our already struggling export industry. The US can do so much more, financially and diplomatically, to end our economy; all this while China can do jack sh** to help.

At FATF, China will be a spectator. If US decides to ban imports from Pakistan, China will be a spectator. If the US demands that the European Union and the UK ban imports from Pakistan, China will be a silent spectator. If the US demands that the Saudis and Emiratis pull back all financial support from Pakistan, China will be a silent spectator. If the US imposes sanctions on Pakistan, China will be a silent spectator...........so what benefit are we really looking forward to from China which compels nonsense, self-defeating and self-destructing decisions such as this?