ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif allayed apprehensions prevailing in certain Gulf quarters that Pakistan, in any way, is siding with Iran, preferring Tehran to the Gulf States in the Yemen conflict. He made it clear that Islamabad unquestionably stands behind Saudi Arabia and the other Gulf countries.There were at least eight unambiguous messages in his ‘clarification’ on Pakistan’s policy on different dimensions of the Yemen crisis, which he read out from a prepared text. “Pakistan does not abandon friends and strategic partners, especially at a time when their security is under threat. Pakistan’s long term commitment to Saudi sovereignty, territorial integrity and stability which has been the main pillar of our foreign policy pursued by successive governments,” Nawaz Sharif said assuring Islamabad’s unequivocal support. All the messages communicated by the prime minister obviously reinforce Saudi stand on the conflict. The first and foremost point was that Saudi Arabia is the ‘strategic’ ally, which has immense significance, and the sanctity of the two Holy Mosques and full support to their Custodian is very dear to Pakistan. The second message was that Pakistan strongly condemns actions by the Houthis and other non-state actors to overthrow the legitimate government of Yemen. This disapproval is definitely no music to the Iran’s ears. Tehran supports Houthis. The third message was conveyed by the prime minister when he said Pakistan believes that the restoration of President Hadi’s government will be an important step forward towards establishing peace in Yemen. This is what Riyadh stresses. The fourth point was that the disappointment of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries over Pakistan’s policy on the Yemen conflict is “based on an apparent misinterpretation of Parliament’s resolution.” This was a reply to those who have taken exception to the motion. Another message was reminder to the GCC countries that Pakistan’s armed forces are busy in dealing with the terrorists through operation Zarb-e-Azb. But, the prime minister said, despite the massive commitment of armed forces in this campaign in which hundreds of brave soldiers and security personnel have laid down their lives, Islamabad has assured through the resolution in clear and categorical terms that any violation of the Saudi territorial sovereignty or threat to the two Holy Mosques will evoke a strong response from Pakistan. This keeps the door to send troops to Saudi Arabia open. The prime minister’s fifth message for the GCC states was that he urged Foreign Minister Javad Zarif to use Iran’s influence to bring the Houthis to the negotiating table, and conveyed to him that the violent overthrow of the legitimate government in Yemen by the Houthis had set a dangerous precedent that was fraught with serious risks for the entire region. The sixth point in Nawaz Sharif’s clarification was that Pakistan will intensify its diplomatic efforts in the coming days, in consultation with the leadership of Saudi Arabia, to resolve the crisis. “We have already intensified contacts with Saudi Arabia to monitor the ground situation and possible threats to the security and territorial integrity of the Kingdom.” Another message was that Pakistan continues to follow the policy of fortifying and strengthening the bonds of friendship with the Gulf countries. “There should be no doubt about our policy of solidarity with the GCC States.” The seventh point was that Pakistan feels urgency of finding a peaceful solution of the crisis through dialogue among the warring factions, which was also reflected in the parliamentary resolution. The eighth message related to his disapproval of public comments on ‘speculative’ media report, which tend to create misunderstanding between Pakistan and its Arab brothers. “We have not responded to these speculations because we believe that public comments would be counter-productive.”In his clarification, the prime minister referred to the parliamentary resolution more than once, which indicated that it did not come out of the blue but was well though out.
