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Indian Jingoism
The Indo-Pak relationship touched a new low with the inflammatory and accusatory statements by the Indian prime minister Narendra Modi and the Afghan President Ashraf Ghani. In its frustration over the futility of its efforts to “isolate” Pakistan, the Modi administration stooped to new levels by deviations from the diplomatic protocols to embarrass the Pakistani delegation led by Sartaj Aziz. Probably much more frustrating for both India and Afghanistan was the expression of support for Pakistan by the Iranian, Chinese and Russian delegates. This reminds one of a line from an epic play by great German philosopher and poet Friedrich Schiller. “He can humiliate me but cannot bend me,” says the orphaned princess of the rough treatment she gets from the new king. Will the Indian belittling attitude force Pakistan into submission? Some geo-political facts point to the contrary. Following its failure to use Russia and China against Pakistan during the BRICS summit at Goa a few weeks ago, the Russian envoy Zamir Kabulov punctured the Indian narrative on terrorism even at the Heart of Asia conference on December 4 at Amritsar. The Heart of Asia conference should not be used by India and Pakistan for scoring points. All the major players to extend all possible support to Afghanistan in its transition, Kabulov said. “India has close cooperation with the US, does Moscow complain? Then why complain about much lower level of cooperation with Pakistan,” he asked when referred to the Russia-Pakistan military exercise. Equally disturbing perhaps was the Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif’s offer to help diffuse Pakistan India tensions. “If Iran can be of any help to any of them, we stand ready because these two neighbours are extremely important to us,” Zareef underscored. To the utter Indo-Afghan dismay the Chinese delegates called Pakistan as “inseparable for the peace efforts in Afghanistan.” It was this synchronisation of approach that resulted in a unanimous declaration,...
Kabul, Taliban Likely to Restart Peace Talks
Diplomatic efforts are under way amidst strong indications of imminent start of peace negotiations between Kabul and the Afghan Taliban, The Express Tribune has learnt. Acting US Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Laura Miller has also arrived in Islamabad and diplomatic sources are linking her visit to the move. Miller met Afghan Ambassador to Pakistan Omar Zakhilwal and “discussed various issues,” the ambassador said on his official Twitter account. The US Ambassador in Islamabad David Hale and Military Deputy to the Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Major General Judd H Lyons were also present in the meeting. The US delegation arrived in Islamabad days after they met Afghan President Ashraf Ghani in Kabul and discussed the situation in the region, Afghanistan and Pakistan ties and Miller’s work in this regard, Ghani’s office said. The US envoy is visiting Pakistan at a time when a senior Taliban representative in Qatar political office told The Express Tribune in a recent interview that the Taliban leaders are “involved in internal discussions” to chalk out a strategy for possible political negotiations. The diplomatic efforts have been intensified weeks after the Taliban political representatives wrapped up a visit to Pakistan in October. Pakistan and Taliban had confirmed the visit but avoided giving any details. Some sources said Pakistan had “encouraged the Taliban negotiators to join the peace talks” like Hizb-e-Islami, which struck a peace deal with the Kabul administration in late September. Adviser to the PM on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz reiterated Pakistan’s support for the Hizb-Afghan govt agreement in his address at the Heart of Asia conference in Amritsar on Sunday. The Amritsar Declaration also “commended the government of Afghanistan in successfully pursuing peace talks with Hizb-e-Islami Gulbuddin Hekmatyar resulting in the signature of a peace agreement that sets a good precedent for future peace talks...
Pak-Afghan Ties
AFGHAN President Ashraf Ghani has become a harsh critic of Pakistan — harsh to the point of outdoing Indian hawks and, seemingly, undermining his own country’s interests. At the Heart of Asia conference in Amritsar, where the theme was cooperation against security threats, Mr Ghani’s rhetoric was aggressive, almost as if Kabul desired a rupture in Pak-Afghan ties. This is not the right attitude and it is hoped that better sense will prevail. Certainly, there is some history here. When Mr Ghani assumed office more than two years ago, he made it a priority to reach out to Pakistan through some bold verbal statements and diplomatic gestures towards Islamabad and Rawalpindi; it indicated that resetting ties with Pakistan were a core part of his agenda. The outreach was received warmly by both the political government and the military leadership here, but Mr Ghani soon became impatient with what was perceived in Afghanistan as Pakistan’s slow pace in addressing his country’s concerns. Yet, Pakistan, too, has had genuine concerns vis-à-vis Afghanistan. As Mr Ghani and the National Unity Government he heads became increasingly hawkish on Pakistan, they deliberately steered closer to India — a growing closeness that the security establishment here saw as one of the reasons behind the renewed security troubles in Balochistan. Moreover, with counter-insurgency operations in North Waziristan and other parts of Fata nearing their final stages, the problem of sanctuaries for anti-Pakistan militants in Afghanistan, particularly in the eastern region, has become a thorny issue. The combination of Afghan and Pakistani grievances against one another has led to a relationship that is now in a shockingly poor state. Still, there are compelling reasons for both sides to move the bilateral relationship back towards cooperation, and Mr Ghani surely knows this, even if he prefers to give voice to a one-sided interpretation of events at the moment. There are at least three areas in which...
Old Challenge, New Approach
AMRITSAR reconfirmed Pakistan remains a target of joint criticism by India and Afghanistan. Much of domestic and international opinion by and large concurs with such criticism. Such is the failure of our Afghanistan and India policies. They cannot and will not be redressed by those who can only construct self-serving narratives. Control of our Afghanistan and India policies remain with those who are neither authorised nor qualified for the task. The situation is similar for much of our domestic security and political policies, Our India policy impacts our Afghanistan policy. This is not to say Pakistan’s Afghanistan policy should run through Delhi. But to a great extent it does because our short-sighted and incompetent policymakers effectively insist that it does — with consistently negative results. Consistent with Einstein’s definition of lunacy, our adherence to such an India-focused Afghanistan policy is endlessly pursued in the hope that, somehow some day, it will produce positive results! We remain obstinately India-centric in the conduct of our Afghanistan policy, which has always alienated Afghanistan. It wilfully ignores the sensibilities and self-image of our Afghan brethren. Moreover, history testifies that any policy towards Afghanistan that provokes Afghan resistance is doomed to failure. While Afghanistan cannot be treated as an aspect of our India policy, the state of our relations with India does impact on the range of options we can avail of to improve our relations with Afghanistan. This is because any significant and sustained improvement in our relations with India may (a) incline us to re-evaluate our dysfunctional strategies towards Afghanistan and (b) reduce India’s incentive to use its influence with Afghanistan as an option against Pakistan. For Pakistan to be simultaneously locked in a zero-sum relationship with two of its most immediate neighbours is pure folly. Pakistan can never be stable in such a situation. India is, of course, the...
Can Afghanistan Choose Between India And Pakistan?
An overwhelming focus on South Asia’s terrorism problem has been a key highlight during the 6th session of the Heart of Asia ministerial conference which is taking place in Amritsar, India. Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani and the Indian Prime minister, Narendra Modi’s joint inauguration of the conference was, by and large, meant to send a message to Islamabad that both countries are united against the latter’s alleged policy of using non-state actors as means of foreign policy. In an apparent reference to Pakistan, Modi said that voices of support for Afghanistan’s peace should be “backed by resolute action not just against forces of terrorism but also against those who support shelter, train and finance them.” Moreover, it was another attempt on New Dehli’s part to enlist maximum diplomatic cooperation to carry on the newly adopted policy of isolating Pakistan regionally and globally. Modi’s new drive to expose Pakistan’s alleged policy of supporting terrorist groups in the region began with the cancellation of the SAARC summit last month in Islamabad where New Dehli’s assertive diplomacy made sure that the key regional states having similar grievances against Pakistan were not participating in the summit. Afghanistan’s President, Ashraf Ghani has been quick to jump on the Modi’s bandwagon aimed at lambasting Pakistan wherever opportunity arises. President Ghani, at the beginning of his presidency attempted to enroll Islamabad’s support in order to bring the Afghan Taliban to the negotiating table. The attempt, however, has proven a nonstarter with Kabul, which blames Pakistan for not following up on its commitments in this regard. While the Heart of Asia forum saw Afghanistan’s president showering appreciation on New Dehli’s recent financial and military assistance, he scoffed at Islamabad’s pledged assistance for similar purposes by stressing that Pakistan should use the money to contain terrorism inside its territories which poses an immediate threat his...
Turkey to Join Pakistan, China, Russia Superpower Bloc?
Turkey has just fueled speculations about a possible superpower rectangle between Turkey, Pakistan, China and Russia. While indications that the Pakistan-China-Russia superpower triangle is becoming a reality keep piling up, other nations are expressing their interest in joining the new bloc, which could become a game-changer for Asia and the world as a whole. Just days after his visit to Pakistan in mid-November, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan suggested that his country should pursue joining a bloc dominated by China and Russia. Erdogan said his country doesn’t need to be fixated on joining the European Union and should join forces with China, Russia and Pakistan instead. Although Turkey has had decades-long hopes of joining the EU, apparently there’s an alternative for Ankara if the EU keeps stalling talks about Turkey’s membership. Turkey wants to be part of Pakistan-China-Russia triangle If Turkey–which has just held talks with Pakistan about strengthening their economic and military ties–joins the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), it would be a clear indication that Pakistan, China and Russia are gaining a new-old friend on their team. If Turkey gives up its efforts to join the EU, we could see the rise of the Pakistan-China-Russia-Turkey rectangle, an even more powerful alternative to the Pak-China-Rus triangle. In fact, Erdogan said he had already discussed the idea of his country joining the SCO, which is dominated by China, Russia and Central Asian nations, with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev. Erdogan’s comment that Turkey doesn’t need to join the EU “at all costs” is a breakthrough development in Turkey-EU relations, which have reached their lowest in the aftermath of the failed anti-government coup on July 15. Is the SCO the new EU after the U.K.’s Brexit? The EU is currently reeling from the loss of the United Kingdom, which voted in favor of leaving the European bloc this past summer. Turkey’s...
China at The Centre of The World Order
A world disillusioned by the rise of Donald Trump in the US and his strong preference for extreme rightist views will no doubt look for other leaders in the global system. Would China be prepared to play that role? In a bi-polar world which is what it is today, international affairs turn into a zero-sum game in which loss by one power turns into gain for the other. This is the way things seem to be moving at the time of the beginning of the Trump era. Beijing is entering the space created by the likely withdrawal of the US from a leadership role in international trade. With the US under Trump not inclined to use its considerable economic and military leverage to stay involved in world affairs, Beijing sees an opportunity. This was articulated by the end-November visit to Beijing by Antonio Guterres, the incoming UN Secretary General. During the visit, the Chinese President Xi Jinping praised the UN, using the language not heard in Beijing with reference to the way it views the world body. The president called the UN “the most universal, representative and authoritative intergovernmental organisation.” China’s leaders focused in particular on some of the UN initiatives. During the election campaign, Trump had called global warming a hoax advanced by China to deindustrialise the US. He had promised to tear into shreds the Paris Agreement once he took office. According to the New York Times’ Jane Perlez, “China’s campaign to enhance its role at the UN dates from September 2015, when Mr. Xi made his first visit to the annual General Assembly meeting in New York. There he pledged that China would establish a permanent force of 8,000 troops and donate $1 billion to a United Nations’ ‘peace and development fund.’ Of the five permanent members of the Security Council, China has deployed the most troops in peacekeeping operations, including to conflict zones like South Sudan where two Chinese soldiers were killed on a mission in July.” While China is making a serious play...
India Can’t Divide Pakistan, Afghanistan, Says Sartaj
Adviser to Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz said on Sunday Pakistan’s relations with Afghanistan stood firm due to ‘our shared and historical bonds and India cannot divide us.’ Addressing a hurriedly-called news conference here after his whirlwind trip to the Indian Punjab’s city of Amritsar where he attended the Heart of Asia Istanbul Process Conference, Sartaj maintained that his participation in the conference was aimed at showing the world that bilateral tensions should not overshadow multilateral forums. He made it clear that the sudden change of his schedule on reaching Amritsar on Saturday evening was due to weather reasons since it would have been fog in Amritsar on Sunday morning and the flight couldn’t land in haze. The apprehension proved to be correct. He attended the two-day conference and had some significant meetings on the margins of the huddle. The news conference took place at the Foreign Office here as he drove straight from the airport to the rendezvous. Foreign Office Spokesman Nafees Zakaria and Pakistan’s Ambassador in Afghanistan Syed Ibrar Husain were also present. Sartaj Aziz said his visit, despite the tensions with India at the Line of Control (LoC), was highly appreciated by the participants of the conference. “We wanted to show that we believe in peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan and have complete solidarity and commitment to bring peace and security in the neighbouring country. The intention of Pakistan was eulogized by the participants.” He said during his interactions at the conference, he clearly mentioned that Pakistan was against all forms and manifestations of terrorism and a regional and collective approach was required to overcome this menace. The adviser said he highlighted the steps being taken under the National Plan of Action (NAP) against all terrorist outfits. He said Pakistan does not need pressure on counter terrorism because ‘we have done more in this area in the last three years than any other...
Heart of Asia 6th Ministerial Conference on Afghanistan: Transcript of President Ashraf Ghani’s Remarks
Dateline: December 04, 2016 Amritsar, India “In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful Prime Minister Modi, distinguished foreign ministers and other ministers, heads of delegations, ladies and gentlemen! Heart of Asia is meeting at a time of great opportunity and significant threats for Afghanistan, with Asia-wide and global implications. Taking stock of the emerging patterns and trends of the year since our meeting in Islamabad last year will help us prepare for 2017 and beyond. But, let me first begin by thanking you and the Indian people for hosting us today in the historic and beautiful city of Amritsar-a city that used to be the center of bills of exchange and commerce connecting India to Central Asia, Russia, Middle East and beyond. And thank you for the visit to the Golden Temple. It was an exceptional and moving event. Mr. Prime Minister: You honored us by visiting Afghanistan twice this year to inaugurate two important iconic projects. The Afghan parliament will stand as an enduring testament of the enduring relationship between the world’s largest democracy and a people and government committed to the realization of democratic rights and obligations of a free citizenry enshrined in our constitution. The Afghan-India Friendship Dam at Salma, generating 42 megawatts of power and storing 650 million cubic meters of water and finished after 40 years of waiting, will bring light and improved lives to the people of Herat. No wonder, that your visit was greeted with spontaneous celebrations across Afghanistan. Equally significant, the trilateral agreement signed in Tehran between India, Iran and Afghanistan on the port of Chabahar is a major step in transforming Afghanistan from a landlocked country to a land bridge. Your words, assuring the Afghan people of the support of 1.25 billion strong Indian people, have been quickly matched by deeds, as demonstrated by your pledge of $1 billion of new development assistance. As we have...
Heart of Asia 6th Ministerial Conference on Afghanistan: Transcript of President Ashraf Ghani's Remarks
Dateline: December 04, 2016 Amritsar, India “In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful Prime Minister Modi, distinguished foreign ministers and other ministers, heads of delegations, ladies and gentlemen! Heart of Asia is meeting at a time of great opportunity and significant threats for Afghanistan, with Asia-wide and global implications. Taking stock of the emerging patterns and trends of the year since our meeting in Islamabad last year will help us prepare for 2017 and beyond. But, let me first begin by thanking you and the Indian people for hosting us today in the historic and beautiful city of Amritsar-a city that used to be the center of bills of exchange and commerce connecting India to Central Asia, Russia, Middle East and beyond. And thank you for the visit to the Golden Temple. It was an exceptional and moving event. Mr. Prime Minister: You honored us by visiting Afghanistan twice this year to inaugurate two important iconic projects. The Afghan parliament will stand as an enduring testament of the enduring relationship between the world’s largest democracy and a people and government committed to the realization of democratic rights and obligations of a free citizenry enshrined in our constitution. The Afghan-India Friendship Dam at Salma, generating 42 megawatts of power and storing 650 million cubic meters of water and finished after 40 years of waiting, will bring light and improved lives to the people of Herat. No wonder, that your visit was greeted with spontaneous celebrations across Afghanistan. Equally significant, the trilateral agreement signed in Tehran between India, Iran and Afghanistan on the port of Chabahar is a major step in transforming Afghanistan from a landlocked country to a land bridge. Your words, assuring the Afghan people of the support of 1.25 billion strong Indian people, have been quickly matched by deeds, as demonstrated by your pledge of $1 billion of new development assistance. As we have...
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I am also a member of National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Information and Broadcasting. Recently, we held a meeting with the Director General of Radio Pakistan and we told them to initiate such local programs (like Constituency Hour) in regional languages to educate and inform people. Even Indian Radio can be heard in FATA which is being used for propaganda purposes and must be closed. Therefore, we should launch some standard and quality programs like CRSS that will change the taste of the listeners.