Bush’s
Visit – A Blessing in Disguise
By Col. Riaz Jafri (Retd.)
Rawalpindi, Pakistan
A lot is being written and
discussed both in the print and electronic media
about President Bush’s recent visit to the
subcontinent. What is mostly being reflected is
a picture of disappointment bordering despondency.
A feeling of being let down by the US and not
coming up to the great expectations expected of
it. No nukes, no Kashmir, no aid, no nothing except
a little cricket. That’s one view.
However, I hold a different view of it all and
consider it to be a blessing in disguise. To me
nothing that happened was unexpected. We have
been through it all before, not once but thrice.
Every time Uncle Sam not only let us down but
ditched us also well and proper. The visit has,
therefore, been a good eye opener. Leaning any
more on the US crutches will be suicidal. Azmooda
ra azmoodan jahal ast (trying the tried one is
stupidity).
We have a friend in need and indeed in China,
to whom we are extremely grateful for her continued
unstinted support and co-operation despite our
sporadic faltering with the US. One must admire
the Chinese sagacity of ignoring understandably
our such foolish honey mooning with the one known
for discarding her allies once her interest is
served.
But, despite it all, suppose the US had treated
Pakistan also at par with India and gone into
some ‘strategic’ deals and agreements,
what would have been the Chinese reaction to it
all? Would it not have caused some anxiety in
their mind about us? Would it not have weakened
the fabric of friendship between us two? It is
for this reason that I consider it to be a blessing
in disguise for providing us with the opportunity
of taking a serious stock of the ground realities.
Even a cursory analysis of the so far American
friendship and aid to us would reveal that all
they did was - in the words of someone –
gave us a fish to eat but never taught us to catch
one. On the contrary our Chinese friends not only
gave us the fish to eat in plenty but also taught
us how to catch it. The fishing net they gave
us was full of impressive loads like Heavy Rebuild
Tank Factory, Heavy Barrel Factory, Heavy Industrial
Electrical Complex, Heavy Mechanical Complex,
Defence Electronics, manufacture of Karakurram
Eight (K-8) and F-7 fighter planes, Chashma Nuclear
Power Project, Sandak Mineral Complex, Gawadur
Deep Sea Port, Jinnah Sports Stadium Islamabad,
etc. etc. apart from huge consignments of military
hardware in the hours of greatest need and many
pacts for aid in cash and so on so forth. The
visit opened our eyes and that’s why I call
it a blessing in disguise.
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