The meeting between the foreign ministers of Pakistan, China and Afghanistan in Islamabad – coming just a couple of days after the first ever Speakers Conference of regional parliamentary leaders – is part of Pakistan’s push to pursue a foreign policy that isn’t US-centric. Our relationship with Afghanistan in particular has suffered because of the US-India nexus and the main aim of this meeting was to begin repairing the damage. A start was made when Afghanistan agreed to be part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor even though it had expressed serious reservations about it in the past. Afghanistan’s stance was that it be allowed to use Pakistani territory for trade with India under CPEC, and it withheld access to Central Asia until we did so. Now, however, it has realised that the potential benefits of CPEC – and the massive Chinese investment it brings – are too great. As the US is becoming further embroiled in an unwinnable war in Afghanistan, China has stepped up its involvement in the country. This has primarily been economic but now it is looking to be more politically active as well. The peace process in the country was believed to be all but moribund as the US announced its plans to pour in more troops but China, which has been part of talks with the Afghan Taliban before and is seen by all sides as an honest broker, used this meeting to take the lead in reviving it.
If the damage that has been done to the Pakistan-Afghanistan relationship is to be repaired, it is essential that the Afghan government try to reach a negotiated peace settlement with the Afghan Taliban. Ties between the two countries worsen every time the Afghan government accuses Pakistan of supporting the Afghan Taliban. Pakistan is important for its perceived ability to bring the Afghan Taliban to the negotiating table, which is why China has proposed restarting the three-country peace process which has been moribund since 2015. At the same time, we need to diversify our ties with Afghanistan so that they are not entirely dependent on security issues. Inviting Afghanistan to join CPEC is a good start not only for Pakistan but for the Afghans too who would probably ideally not be dependent on the US. As the economic fortunes of Pakistan and Afghanistan become increasingly intertwined, both countries will find it easier to withstand American pressure and go their own way.