US had no clear aims in Afghanistan after Osama Bin Laden was killed: PM Imran

Criticising the United States over its 20-year war in Afghanistan, Prime Minister Imran Khan has said that Washington had no clear aims in the war-torn country.

In an interview with Dr Eric Li, Director of the Advisory Committee of the China Institute of Fudan University, PM Imran said the US mission in Afghanistan should have been over once they killed former Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden. "So what they were doing after that, none of the Americans knew."

"Anyone who understood the history of Afghanistan would never have done what the Americans did," he added.

The premier said that he was against the military solution to Afghanistan from day one.

"They (Americans) were never clear on what they were trying to achieve in Afghanistan. Was it nation-building, democracy, or the emancipation of Afghan women? They had no clear aims," the prime minister added.

When the aim of a mission is unclear, it ultimately leads to "failure," as in the case of the US invasion of Afghanistan for the "war on terror," he added.

US mission in Afghanistan was based on “false premise”

PM Imran Khan said the entire US mission was based on a “false premise”. But now, he said, the Americans are unable to differentiate between the general population and the Taliban, thus forcing the country towards a potential humanitarian crisis.

“If there is chaos in Afghanistan and the Taliban government gets weaker, it cannot take on international terrorist organisations,” he said.

PM Imran offers to mediate between US and China

Speaking about China-US relations, the prime minister said the world does not want another cold war. He said Pakistan may replicate the role it played in 1970 when it brought China and the US together.

PM Imran Khan emphasised that Pakistan does not want to be involved in any conflict, rather than becoming embroiled in new rival blocs, as it has in the past.

He said joining the "war on terror" and the corruption of the past rulers badly affected Pakistan. PM Imran Khan highlighted that the country lost about 80,000 people and over $100 billion in the war.

CPEC

PM Imran Khan also invited other countries to join and invest in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project, emphasising that the government's foremost priority is geo-economics and uplifting the economy.

He lamented the Western countries' raising suspicions about the corridor project and said it made "no sense."

The prime minister said Pakistan sees CPEC and the Gwadar project as a great opportunity for its geo-economics. "My priority is the 220 million people of Pakistan," he stressed.

PM Imran Khan said both Pakistan and China have always stood by each other in difficult times and this all-weather relationship has transformed into a people-to-people friendship.

Kashmir issue

Responding to a question about Jammu and Kashmir, the prime minister lamented that India is denying the right of self-determination to the Kashmiri people, guaranteed by the UN Security Council resolutions.

The premier criticised the BJP-led Indian government for its marginalisation of minorities, including Muslims, and termed it a tragedy for the Indian nation.

He said better sense should prevail in India; otherwise, it is only going to damage itself.