Living up to his repute of running his administration through tweets, President Trump’s outburst last week of stopping more than one billion dollars (per annum) US aid to Pakistan because the country had ‘done damn’ to help USA in the war on terrorism in Afghanistan. The president’s unguarded tweet reportedly has upset the State Department and the Pentagon more than Pakistan because this country is used to face such volley of criticism during his watch. The subsequent damage control statements by the US Administration underscoring the importance of the role of Pakistan for US strategic interests in general and in the context of Afghan peace process in particular, vindicated the disconnect between the White House and the rest of the US Administration. Playing hot and cold by the US against Pakistan has been like method in madness throughout but this time it was uncalled for when reviewed in the context of US-Pakistan’s recent endeavours focused to ‘reset’ their relations. Pakistan’s Foreign Office response was impeccably measured intended to continue to build upon the gains so far as the relations between the two countries were concerned.
Prime Minister Imran Khan in his tweet responded in equal and befitting terms by reminding US president that one hundred fifty thousand US and Nato troops in Afghanistan assisted by two hundred and fifty thousand Afghan troops could not defeat Afghan Taliban despite spending one trillion dollars in Afghan war as Taliban were getting stronger by the days. He also corrected that Pakistan received twenty billion dollars of US aid and whereas the war had cost the country more than one hundred billion dollars notwithstanding losing precious lives of the brave soldiers and civilians close to one hundred thousand notwithstanding millions of peoples of Fata who had to be relocated to carry out military operation to flush out the terrorists from the county’s region. PPP leader Mohtarma Bakhtawar while endorsing the prime minister’s rejoinder also said that war on terror was our war and we had to fight it out thoroughly and comprehensively for which the nation’s resolve was unflinching.
The prime minister represented the sentiments of the nation when he made it abundantly clear to the US president that Pakistan would not engage in the wars of others anymore and would prioritise the interests of the people of the country instead. The Army Chief while recently addressing a seminar at National Defense University, Islamabad, (NDU) also expressed similar views while scintillating the distinction of Pakistan as having rendered such a large number of sacrifices in the fight against terrorism no other country of the world could even come distantly closer to it.
Scapegoating Pakistan for US and its allies’ military failures in Afghanistan may not come around convincing because Afghan Taliban had defeated the largest war machine of the former Soviet Union that had geographical advantage too. Evidently, Afghan Taliban were seemingly very well on the trajectory to inflict historic military defeat to the other superpower of the world that had tested all its military might juxtaposed with technological advancements but Afghan Taliban had proved as invincible as ever. US desperation to seek out political settlement of Afghan issue also suggests the urgency that is indeed rooted in US public opinion that wants to get rid of this 17 years long Afghan war of attrition on the analogy of Vietnam War, implying almost unilateral withdrawal. The ongoing negotiations between the US and the Taliban in Qatar to the exclusion of the Afghan incumbent government are indicative of the US working overdrive on the narrative of cutting its losses those are becoming increasingly prohibitive. US is seemingly prepared to concede more grounds to make peace with Taliban who have proved both persistent and consistent in their strategy by any stretch of imagination.
President Trump’s out of blue latest tirade against Pakistan may have spoil the enabling environment temporarily detrimental to the quest of an early resolution of Afghan owned and Afghan led political settlement. However, all indications are that Pakistan may not be deterred in extending its support as it has been facilitating the peace process at multiple levels further augmented by release of Afghan Taliban leaders including Mullah Baradar to give impetus to the process. Pakistan may likely to continue to facilitate the peace process notwithstanding US president’s broadside as Pakistan wants the political settlement of the Afghan issue considering it in the best interest of the both countries and beyond. Pakistan and Afghanistan people have fire in their belly to see the return of peaceful conditions in both the countries so critical for their socio-economic uplift that had been in the reverse gear since the Afghan inferno engulfed both the countries.
The reports are abounding that Taliban are winning in Afghanistan. According to the New York Times, Taliban control more than 61% Afghan territory despite the massive financial, technical, intelligence wherewithal of the Allied Forces deployed in Afghanistan. They are though very well equipped and trained but they are no match to Taliban because they treat them as occupying forces and as such totally determined to defeat them like they subdued the former Soviet Union. They also have the definite advantage of knowing hilly terrains very well that provide Taliban fighters exemplary hideouts and perfect camouflage to strike the enemy decisively from the closet proximity without being noticed at all. They are undoubtedly on the trajectory to defeat the sole superpower that is now presumably desperate to get out of the hole of Afghanistan as the last and only resort of redemption.
The US and its allies are convinced without a shred of doubt that they cannot win war in the battlefields of Afghanistan. Now, in order to pre-empt the likely embarrassment they have been blaming Pakistan quite often as responsible of their military setbacks because the country has provided the safe havens to the Afghan Taliban from where they plan and execute terrorist attack inside Afghanistan and against the US troops. They have been mounting pressure on Pakistan to delegitimise, disrupt and dismantle the alleged safe havens from its soil failing which the relations between the two countries may get frayed detrimental to the interests of the countries, the region and beyond. Pakistan denies the existence of such safe havens and has been successfully using its good offices to bring the Taliban on the negotiation table to seek out Afghan owned and Afghan led political settlement.
Cautiously optimistic, it seems that the ongoing peace process in Qatar is on track where Afghan Taliban and the US diplomats are heavily engaged to make qualitative progress leading to the political settlement of the Afghan issue. Mr. Khalilzade, US President’s Envoy on Afghanistan, in his recent statement in the newspapers predicted an agreement of political settlement of the Afghan imbroglio by May this year. This is very good news the world has been waiting for the last many many years. Hope and pray follow up developments turn out to be so to the collective enchantment of the people of the two countries who have experienced the worst of the scourge of terrorism for so long.
Hopefully, the US president my not throw spanner in the work in the ongoing diplomatic efforts focused to negotiate political settlement of the long festering Afghan issue. With due deference to the American electorates, President Trump’s policies seemingly have the definite propensity to interventionism and isolationism of staggering proportion. Such assertions tend to target the potential victims whether situated within and beyond boarders with, of course, couple of exceptions. The president’s munificence is evident in case of Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, whose famous hug is warmly reciprocated by the US president without worrying about his branded and exclusive outfit. Israeli prime minister is also his hot favourite at the cost of Palestinians. President Trump’s decision to shift the US embassy to Jerusalem was like rubbing the salt into the wounds of the Palestinians in particular and the Muslim world in general. But, who cares?
President Trump’s uneasy relations with the Latin American countries have been on the downward trajectory mired in brinkmanship. The leadership of the European countries was also so much annoyed with the US president’s browbeat that it has been constrained to pursue the idea of European Army to get over the sense of insecurity US president has been browbeating them forcing them to pay more for the security umbrella. His trade war with China and imposition of sanctions on Russia are the manifestations of his yet other outlandish alacrities to push them against the wall. His epic diplomatic blitz with scant regard to the international community flabbergasted the whole world on his unilateral withdrawal from the Iranian Nuclear Deal and Paris Climate Change Agreement.
The above two paragraphs may look out of the context of the article but have been deliberately added to reinforce the unpredictability of President Trump to put the seamless process off the track. So, ‘be aware ides of March’. Pakistan leadership may not rule out the possibility of facing the criticism of the US president yet again in the future expressing his annoyance over this country of not doing more, and the allegations of duplicity may be voiced in full throttle. However, Pakistan may continue to facilitate the negotiated settlement of the Afghan issue considering peace in Afghanistan is in the best interest of Pakistan as well giving damn to distractions.
muhammadshaheedi@yhoo.com
