Fighting others’ battles

Pakistan has plenty of problems of its own and should really be fighting to rid itself of these. Instead there are reports and indications that we can become embroiled in a dangerous war being fought out far away from home in Yemen, which plunged into crisis last month after Shia Houthi rebels forced elected President Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi to flee the capital Sanna. Saudi Arabia, where Hadi was now surfaced, is a key player in the regional strife and has begun air strikes along with a regional coalition made up of 10 countries to prevent further Houthi advances into cities like Aden. Islamabad has become a key player in what could be a very messy regional situation. Although Defence Minister Khwaja Asif told the National Assembly on Thursday that no decision had been taken on backing the Saudis in Yemen, it is obvious that this may not be the whole truth. Following a phone call from Saudi Crown Prince Muqrin bin Abdulaziz, a top level security meeting was held in Islamabad and a delegation led by Khwaja Asif and Sartaj Aziz may probably visit the kingdom to discuss developing affairs with the Saudis. Pakistan, as Khwaja Asif and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif have already stated, has committed itself to defending Saudi Arabia and it seems it is now being called on to do so. Reports suggest this agreement may in fact have been reached earlier this month when Sharif visited Riyadh to a royal welcome. The Foreign Office has, however, consistently denied Pakistan had expressed any willingness to join in the war being waged again the Yemeni rebels.
This deception is not encouraging. The political spectrum in Pakistan is broadly against any involvement in other people’s wars. As citizens, we deserve to be told the truth. What is happening at present also reveals a great deal about Pakistan’s foreign policy and the bind it finds itself in. Given economic constraints and other pressures, we are really in no position to resist requests from powerful allies. But at the same time our country needs to put itself first. Becoming embroiled in Yemen will draw us into a war we have nothing to do with. Given the Shia-Sunni divide in Yemen, it is a war that has regional implications which spread out across the Middle East and perhaps further across the world. It is essential that we keep all this in mind when making any final decision. There seems to be little sense in placing Pakistani boots on the soil of other nations, especially at a time when those boots are needed at home to quash serious conflict on our own turf. This should for now be the focus of our energies.