Pakistan can benefit from changing region: German scholar

Islamabad
The world is moving from away from the Cold War binary, to an environment where you don’t talk in ‘either-or’ language. Geo-economics is replacing geo-politics. International relations is turning into a market for competitive project. Such changes can have a positive development on Pakistan, if it wants.
This was stated by Dr. Dietrich Reetz, associate professor at the Department of Political Science at Free University Berlin, Germany, at a talk hosted by Pak Institute for Peace Studies (PIPS), a think-tank based in Islamabad. The session was moderated by Gen (r) Talat Hussain, former defense secretary, says a press release.
Outlining Pakistan’s presence at the crossroad of South Asia and Central Asia, Dr. Reetz shared strategic positions doesn’t automatically bring fruits. He asked Pakistan to deal with neighbours in an atmosphere of “partly cooperation and partly contestation.”
For one, relations with India are not sustainable for both the two countries. He asked to assess as to whether non-state actors have paid any dividends to Pakistan. It is difficult to suppress sectarianism for some groups, and allow for others.
Taking part in the discussion, former ambassador Saeed Khalid said of India-Pakistan cricket diplomacy, “if they don’t want to play cricket with us, they don’t want to play ball with us.”
When it comes to China, Dr. Reetz said, in Pakistan, the dominant theme is its special relation with China. But China wants to have equitable relation with India.
Dr. Reetz asked for matching discourse to reality: while former officials often speak of getting away from the United States, reality is that Pakistan has to rely in the Americans.
Dr. Reetz shared how Pakistan can tap into its “cultural or religious capital” in many countries to the west. Many bureaucrats in Afghanistan have studied in Pakistan, while the current grand mufti of Tajikistan also studied at a Pakistani university.
Meanwhile, Tajikistan’s ambassador to Pakistan, Sherali S. Jononov, said that CASA electricity project is advancing. Next year, in 2016, he said, will be the official ceremony of CASA.