Abdul Rahim|
Deepening of ties of Iran and the GCC with India is due to many reasons but not least the grievance of the Arab-league on Pakistan’s decision not to participate in Yemen conflict. For Iran, its ire is the result of past several decades of Pakistan’s all out support to Saudi Arabia, neglecting Iran on all fronts. Today, Pakistan is in a frenzied position where policy-makers are facing global, regional and internal challenges both at security and political levels.
Cricket blasts vs Cricket diplomacy
Either Indian policy is very strong or Pakistan is incompetent in securing regional and global gains. Pak-India cricket diplomacy turned into cricket-blasts, wiping-up dozens of innocent lives across the country.
Either Indian policy is very strong or Pakistan is incompetent in securing regional and global gains.
Deterring Pakistan from regional and global influences, India is wisely playing tricky cards of cricket to restrain international cricket entering into Pakistan. The chance to stage PSL’s final in Lahore seems impossible due to current fresh wave of blasts. India has committed to keep Pakistan in remoteness in course of cricket, global trust and support to fight terrorism.
Don’t you think that the current blasts show Pakistan’s policy failures?
read more: Will ‘Raadul-Fasaad’ complete the unfinished agenda of Raheel Sharif in Punjab?
Neo-realism should have driven Pakistani policy not Incompetency
Taking a neo-realist approach towards foreign and internal policy analysis, would secure interests with smart and active policies. Unfortunately, the ambiguous and unclear policy designs and paradigms adopted by Pakistan’s foreign policy practitioners have ‘unsecured’ Pakistan’s interests both on regional and global fronts. The reason is very simple, the quadruplet nature of foreign and Nawaz-COAS oriented internal policies have brought Pakistan once again on the brink of blasts and blows.
India, securing global and regional interests, has always played double cards both in political and diplomatic hemispheres. Blaming and dissing Pakistan are the prime objects of Indian Prime Minister Modi’s policy, and he has acted accordingly. Deepening ties with GCC members, strengthening relations with Saudi Arabia and engaging Iran and Afghanistan in bilateralism and multilateralism are Modi’s pragmatic policy success.
the quadruplet nature of foreign and Nawaz-COAS oriented internal policies have brought Pakistan once again on the brink of blasts and blows.
On the other hand, Pakistan’s political quadruplet; PM Nawaz, Sartaj Aziz, Tariq Fatmi and Shahbaz are driving foreign policy on four different roads where they shall never meet each other for mutual benefits. As a result, reactive and ambiguous policy options and out-dated attempts have resulted in our failure in pursuing interests though lobbying foreign governments. Instead, a new trend has been set where our policy reacts on international changes.
read more: Why Nawaz Sharif’s foreign policy is a complete disaster?
ISPR’s stated and PM Nawaz’s confirmed internal security policy has further fueled the fire of uncertainties leading to complete failure of internal policy. The multiple bomb blasts within a week, blowing up hundreds of innocents, manifests policy failures which are even more vibrant and threatening to the security of the country and which may lead us to an even worse security situation.
India has successfully depicted Pakistan as safe haven for terrorists and militants where possibility of international cricket matches seem mere a dream.
There is no concept of securing extra policy options. The laudatory aim to arrange PSL’s (Pakistan super league) final in Lahore taking advantage of the failure of Big-Three League has now almost collapsed. We could have still managed India’s resistance, but the sudden series of blasts across Pakistan, focused on Lahore, has now made it impossible. The likely denial of international players to play in final in Lahore will take this another stillborn venture.
Of course, global and regional powers will try their best to create an insecure and sabotage Pakistan’s internal security leading to institutional failures in the state. India is doing the same to us in the region. Constructing Chabahar port, engaging Afghanistan in multiple agreements, and blaming and disrupting Pakistan internally are cards being wisely played by Indian policymakers, for their own exclusive hegemony. Resultant, India has successfully depicted Pakistan as safe haven for terrorists and militants where possibility of international cricket matches seem mere a dream.
read more: History teaches that Weakness invites Aggression: So What is Pakistan’s Foreign…
Aim to arrange PSL’s final in Lahore and ignoring Indian’s possible reaction will prove to be disastrous and deadly for Pakistan
The leadership void, conflict over security paradigms, ambiguity in policy designs, pursuing interests through strategic assets, failure in pursuing interests through lobbies, undefined and unclear internal security policies and reactive behaviors of civil-military leaderships on global and regional changes have brought Pakistan to bear the brunt of terrorism and bomb blasts, blowing up innocents in numbers.
Blaming Pakistan as a loci of terrorists by India and recent consecutive blasts will strengthen the focus of global powers on Pakistan as a safe haven state for terrorist. As a result, Pakistan has wasted years by denying the situation and arguing to understand the core reason of terror problem. Islamabad’s failure is Pakistan’s institutional and systematic failures which are more dangerous if analyzed critically.
Have we really given up on our created proxies?
Either one accepts or rejects; our policy-designers are still viewing religious militants as Pakistan’s assets in order to encounter India in Kashmir and Kabul. The outcome of such Frankensteins has been more observed in the last two decades. No, doubt, these monsters, whether themselves or as toys in other hands, are the actual threats to Pakistan’s peace and security.
About all, Saudi support to Sunni-Muslims and Iran’s to Shia-Muslims have further complicated the security challenges. Pakistan is a ground where they galvanize their proxies in order to crush each other. Shut up call to all these monsters is the need of the time.
The solution doesn’t lay in military operations but in active and pro-active foreign and internal security designs to secure Pakistan. The army will never need to operate against militants if clear-cut and robust policies are being formulated on both fronts.
Radd–ul–Fasaad and Radd-ul-shaitan will do nothing alone, but robust foreign policy, active internal security paradigms, civil-military anti-terrorism collaboration, ensuring 20 provisions of NAP and active NACTA can ensure secure and peaceful Pakistan.
Abdul Rahim is currently pursuing M. Phil degree with a focus on Talibanization and Imperialist Designs in 21st Century at International Islamic University, Islamabad. He tweets at Rahim_realist and his email is abdul.mseng346@iiu.edu.pk. The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Global Village Space’s editorial policy.