The spy web

Pakistan has announced the arrest of six alleged Afghan spies from Balochistan. It is a well-known fact that the province has become a hotbed of a range of international and local actors, including militants, terrorists, separatists and foreign intelligence agents. Not very long ago a RAW agent was arrested, and before him two Afghan intelligence agents were also reported to have been arrested. As far as the complexities of regional politics go, it is never a surprise when members of foreign intelligence agencies are discovered operating in a province perceived to be critical to the future of Pakistan. The Gwadar Port is the endpoint of the CPEC, which could change the flow of trade in the region in a few years. The port poses a tangible threat to the economic interests of regional and global powers; and the involvement of foreign agencies in promoting destabilisation is not unexpected.

The problem is that focus on spy agencies – instead of diplomacy or without it – is not going to bear much fruit. Our entire region has been destabilised by games between intelligence agencies. These games can never lead to lasting peace. The Afghan intelligence’s efforts to destabilise Pakistan would also be to that country’s own detriment. This is similar to how any purported relationship between the Afghan Taliban and Pakistani intelligence would only make Pakistan more unstable. What is needed is maturity and statesmanship as the efforts to build bridges between Pakistan and Afghanistan slowly collapse. Talks have not gone forward and borders are being sealed as verbal spats have ensued. The consequences of this impasse continuing threaten the security of both countries. On Pakistan’s part, it also threatens its economic future. A reflection of the ensuing confusion is the xenophobic diatribe by Balochistan Home Minister Sarfaraz Bugti. He has decided that the best way forward is to ‘drive out’ all Afghan refugees. This trivialises the real issues between intelligence agencies and governments which must be resolved by dialogue, not kicking every Afghan refugee out of Pakistan. There needs to be a specific investigation into the activities of the six arrested Afghans. But more than that, there is a need to rebuild trust between all the countries in our region. This will require everyone to recognise that spy games hurt everyone.