Pakistan must implement smart diplomacy as neighbours can’t be changed: Munter

Former US ambassador to Pakistan Cameron Munter has said Pakistan will have to implement smart diplomacy as neighbours cannot be changed.

He was speaking to members of the Karachi Council on Foreign Relations (KCFR) at a breakfast dialogue titled ‘Geo-political pivot in the region’, held at a hotel on Monday.

The KCFR organised the event in strategic partnership with the Pathfinder Group and the Martin Dow Group. Ikram Sehgal, chairman of the council, and Commodore (retd.) Sadeed A Malik, secretary general, also spoke on this occasion.

Munter, who is also a former president of the East West Center, emphasised that Pakistan would have to implement smart diplomacy as neighbours could not be changed. He was of the view that although it was very hard for Pakistanis to reconcile with India in the current scenario, they should try to do so.

“Pakistan should solve its disputes with India. India has also domestic issues. Pakistan should focus on its domestic issues like tax growth, education, etc.,” he said.

He said the US administration in the past tried to build bilateral confidence-building measures between Pakistan and India – and facilitated talks between then Pakistan president Pervez Musharaf and Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh to discuss the disputes of Sir Creek and Siachen and to promote cross-border trades. “But I believe that the Mumbai attacks had failed all the efforts,” said Munter, who served as US ambassador in Islamabad between 2010 and 2012.

The Kashmir issue was very important but this should not prevent Pakistan to focus on its domestic agenda, he said. He added that the world countries had condemned India for atrocities in Kashmir, but for this issue, relations between the two neighbouring countries should not be halted at all.

“The Kashmir issue is same as Mexico had with the US. Mexico remained an issue for the US and we had to listen to them. Along with Kashmir, Pakistan should not ignore its local issues of tax reforms, education, and justice.”

However, Munter said, he did not see an immediate way to resolve the Kashmir issue. He said Pakistan should also understand that it may take longer to settle this issue and both countries had to move forward despite this tough time. “We know that owing to this situation, it is very difficult for Pakistanis to love India, but they should try to. I hope this situation will not escalate further to reach a point to even consider atomic misadventure. Nuclear war cannot be handled.”

Munter remarked that President Donald Trump in the US, Imran Khan in Pakistan, Erdogan in Turkey and Boris Johnson in Britain showed the rise of non-traditional leadership across the world.

“Trump and Imran Khan now have good chemistry, which is an encouraging sign as leaders. Imran Khan has earned a good image in the United National General Assembly’s by his speech. It is just a beginning and he hoped this will put relations between the two friendly nations on better stage again,” he said.

Responding to a question from the audience, Munter accepted the fact that many countries had their economic interests in India; likewise, Pakistan had with China, but Pakistan would have to play it very sensibly and should not stick to any side.

“Pakistan should honestly think about what China is going to offer it and how this will impact its culture. There are good cultural relations between the US and Pakistan. Around one million Muslims are in trouble in China and they are re-educating them, but Prime Minister Imran Khan will not be interested to talk on it because China is a friend of Pakistan,” he said.

He said that the US was also a friend of Pakistan, but sometimes leaders had to make unpopular decisions. Munter said the US had now been working on a new regional policy called “Indo-Pak” for the region along with the Indian Ocean and Pakistan was an important place in the policy.

He said President Trump’s policy “America First” was not for Pakistan or other countries, but for the people of the US. “Trump is not thinking for the benefit of Pakistan but for his own Americans; however human rights, women rights and environment issues are also important.” He said the Trump administration had been tired of the US presence in Afghanistan and they wanted to end the 18-year-long conflict.