Page 7 - Pakistan Link - October 13, 2023

OPINION PAKISTAN LINK - OCTOBER 13, 2023 - P7
n By Touqir Hussain Pakistan (TTP) either. Their support for
Georgetown University US Pakistan’s Foreign Policy Is Well Past Its Shelf them is both a leverage against Pakistan
and a reciprocation for TTP’s help dur-
hen should a country be- Life. Here’s Why It Needs a Paradigm Shift ing the Afghan war — something they
come aware that its for- may need again. The solution to the
Weign policy is past its shelf TTP problem has to be found within
life and change is long overdue? on caution instead of blind trust. Pakistan. Seeking it in Afghanistan
It’s when the nation Pakistan wishes to enhance its re- could deteriorate relations with the Tal-
is being left behind lationship with the US, particularly iban and exacerbate Afghanistan’s insta-
in a rapidly changing by fostering economic collaboration. bility, which is not in our best interest.
world, its diplomatic While the US doesn’t possess vital eco- The Taliban may be able to control
space is shrinking, it nomic interests in Pakistan, it recogniz- Afghanistan but not stabilize it — at
struggles to make new es the potential significance of strength- least not to the extent that it could be-
friends and retain old ening economic bonds to achieve its come an attractive economic partner
ones, and its enemies are no longer objectives in the region. Many areas of in the region. Without this, Pakistan is
afraid of it. potential cooperation, including energy never going to realize its dream of be-
Realistically speaking, foreign and technology, agriculture and IT, are be- coming a hub for trade investment and
domestic policies are inherently in- ing discussed. Washington also wants energy in the region. Because of its se-
terlinked. If there is something wrong to help with healthcare and education. curity-dominated foreign policy, Paki-
with a country’s foreign relations, it is In the Middle East, relations with stan has thus effectively shut one door
largely because something is wrong Iran are important but challenging, leav- to economic progress. Another door,
with its domestic policy. ing room for improvement. Pakistan also India, is also closed, for which Pakistan
Pakistan’s domestic policy has made maintains good relations with Turkey. of course is not entirely to blame.
it dependent on external powers. This hance economic benefits, countries are However, Islamabad should not ex- Pakistan’s security policies have lim-
dependency creates imbalanced rela- The good old days strengthening or loosening traditional pect its closeness with Arab countries to ited its options for economic engage-
tionships, eroding the country’s ability But the best days of our foreign ties, and seeking new friendships. Old, continue. While Pakistan remains rel- ment in the region in more ways than
to find new allies, while at the same policy are long gone as the policy has fixed and unchanging alliances are be- evant, some of its historical importance one. The policies have given rise to ex-
time discouraging the development of increasingly been made less out of con- ing questioned. The idea is to get eco- has dimmed in light of emerging align- tremist and militant organizations with-
its own domestic strength. cern for national interest and more by nomic benefits from wherever you ments in the region. As for Saudi Arabia in the country, inhibiting foreign invest-
This has left it weak and vulnerable the leadership’s own priorities and pur- can by cooperating while competing and the Gulf states, we cannot ignore the ments, along with weak rule of law and
to exploitation. Below is a brief story of suit of political power. and subordinating your conflicts to fact that two million Pakistanis work in poor governance for decades. Not to
how it all happened. The rise of extremist outfits, born economic interests where necessary. Saudi Arabia and are the biggest source mention its dependency-oriented for-
out of Pakistan’s strategic ambitions and Conflicts are not being shelved, but of remittances for the country. eign policy has reduced its list of friends
A historical review of the foreign Washington’s ill-conceived wars, have countries are no longer making them Regarding financial assistance to and benefactors, leaving it with only a
policy come to threaten our internal stability obstacles to cooperation. Pakistan, the Gulf states are shifting few options for global engagement.
Pakistan has great diplomats, but and economic future. Instability thrives their strategy. They are now prioritiz- Pakistan needs a new approach
diplomats do not make policy; the po- when a state is too weak and ambivalent There is still some hope ing the diversification of their own which is currently absent as it contin-
litical leadership does. What is even to act. The hybrid system has split the Pakistan’s foreign relations, on the economies, anticipating a transition ues to be consumed by ideology and
more interesting about Pakistan’s for- authority to act and the responsibility other hand have literally been frozen away from fossil fuels in the future. internal struggles for power. Going for
eign policy is that it has historically for action, providing on the one hand in time, except for its strong relations Their aim is to engage in strategic in- the ‘Jihadist option’ has boomeranged
prioritized the role of the security es- for indecision, thoughtless or even with China. Luckily, the relations have vestments rather than providing grants while India’s strengths have multiplied,
tablishment. reckless actions, and on the other for enough residual strength to provide a driven by ideology. Consequently, they earning it a popular global status.
Initially, Pakistan had no choice. lack of accountability. platform for renewal through a proper are emphasizing the need for structural Our interest in talking to India
With the newborn state facing an exis- The ruling establishment’s response foreign policy. But a lot more has to and policy reforms in Pakistan before serves no purpose when India is not in-
tential challenge to its security and eco- to the deepening crisis a few years ago change to create a new foreign policy. extending financial support. terested in dialogue. It is not interested
nomic survival, it searched for a strate- was to make a rhetorical switch to geo- Here is where we stand now. Finally, as for Russia, the two coun- in anything Pakistan has to offer, be it
gic relationship with a major power. economics — economic policies pur- What began as a tentative tactical al- tries decided in 2014 to seek closer economic relations or Kashmir — In-
At the time, the search for a ma- sued on the basis of global economic liance between China and Pakistan 73 relations that had been previously in- dia thinks it has found the solution to
jor strategic partner, the arrival of the and geopolitical considerations. years ago has matured into an extraor- hibited due to Moscow’s strategic ties Kashmir without Pakistan’s help.
Cold War in South Asia, and the United It was too little, too late. dinary relationship of mutual strategic with India. But concrete progress is yet Pakistan wrongly assumes that its
States’ search for allies all fit perfectly Geo-economics largely remains a and economic dependence. The China to be seen. One of the possible reasons geopolitical position holds evergreen
together. American assistance estab- slogan as Pakistan fails to make neces- connection has become ever more im- could be Moscow’s reported dissatisfac- significance. Our geopolitical position
lished a balance of power in the region, sary shifts. The underlying structural portant for Pakistan, and not for all the tion with Pakistan over its policy on the is only an asset for a stable and strong
securing Pakistan’s survival and its eco- economic weaknesses, poor gover- right reasons. Ukraine war. Even though the scope Pakistan, but for a weak and unstable
nomic assistance also helped the new- nance, and lack of political stability do The dependency syndrome, anti- for expanding relations with Russia is one, it is a liability.
ly-founded state build a platform for not make Pakistan a good partner or an Americanism and a warped view of limited, Pakistan should persist in its The bottom line is that a nation’s abil-
future economic development. attractive market for foreign investors. ‘independent’ foreign policy have led efforts to strengthen ties. ity to influence foreign relations, espe-
The US connection strengthened As former finance minister Miftah Is- to the perception that with China at its cially in today’s world, depends on eco-
the elite-based ruling establishment, mail said in a recent interview, “In the back, Pakistan does not need to priori- The biggest foreign policy challenges nomics, which in turn is dependent on
particularly the army, as they provided last 20 to 25 years, we have not solved a tize its other relationships. No issue impacts Pakistan’s inter- political stability and good governance.
the services Washington was looking single big problem”. The fact is that anti-Americanism nal and external challenges as much as Economic power is at the core of na-
for. The army therefore became the pre- is not a badge of independent foreign peace and stability in Afghanistan. It is tional strength. It enables a state to have
dominant player in Pakistan’s political Where do we go from here? policy. Pakistan’s mounting economic not just the Americans or Soviets that a good defense capability, enriches the
life. The Pakistan army’s services, the Pakistan’s organizing idea has long difficulties, rising challenges to inter- lost since the overthrow of Afghanistan’s quality of life of citizens, and has the
country’s geopolitical location, and its been addicted to a world that is now nal stability and continuing threats to monarchy and the wars that followed. potential to attract friendly relations
Islamization made it an attractive part- extinct. The geopolitical environment, external security require good relations Pakistan and Afghanistan too have lost with other countries from a non-subor-
ner for different reasons, to China, the which it banked on for decades to de- with Washington. China cannot be the by becoming tributaries and confluences dinate position. The dominant theme of
US and Saudi Arabia, who became its fine its value for big powers, no longer answer to all of Pakistan’s problems, nor of extremist influences and instability. all emerging regional and global groups
principal benefactors. exists. The organizing idea of Pakistan should it be expected to be. China is a Pakistan’s policy planners demon- in recent years is economics. And there
Given the multiplicity and relative itself — an elitist-led country depen- strategic partner but cannot be a substi- strated either complete disregard or are opportunities for Pakistan as well,
permanence of interests that bind Chi- dent on external help — has failed. tute for other relations. To develop rela- lack of awareness of these changes as but if the current state of Pakistan per-
na and Pakistan together, the relation- Pakistan would do well by studying tions with both China and the US, Pak- they persisted in their misguided ap- sists, it will remain on the sidelines.
ship between the two countries became and adapting to the far-reaching chang- istan’s diplomacy needs to be flexible. proach of nurturing and safeguarding Pakistan is secure enough to take
strategically significant to Pakistan as es the world has undergone at all lev- Ties with China may be indispensable, the Afghan Taliban for decades. The calculated risks and embrace change.
well. But the other two remained largely els. Under the umbrella of an unsteady but ties with America are necessary. Taliban were never going to be the so- With ample national strength, the na-
transactional and truncated. world order, led by the US and China, America has taken nothing from lution to Afghanistan’s problems or our tion can navigate towards a secure and
Pakistan’s foreign relations have no there are several middle and aspiring big Pakistan that its leaders have not given problems with India. prosperous future for its people. For
doubt had their success stories, which powers multi-aligning and networking of their own accord to strengthen their The irony is that the present Taliban that, we need a foreign policy that be-
have been crowned by the Pak-China through mini-forums, ad hoc groupings position in the domestic struggle for are not as domestically stable as the first gins at home and is housed in the for-
friendship. Pakistan has stood up well to and shifting coalitions at the global and power. This has to stop. The relation- dispensation of the 90’s but they have a eign office which should be owning the
India’s hegemony and its nuclear capabil- regional levels with or without getting ship must no longer be based on Paki- greater chance of being accepted by the foreign policy, not renting it.
ity, for which both the civilian and mili- involved in the US-China rivalry. stan’s role as an adjunct to America’s global community. The Taliban govern- (The writer, a former Ambassador,
tary leaderships are to be credited, has not It is already apparent how multi- wars. It has to find a new sense of pur- ment is reaching out to other countries is adjunct professor at Georgetown
only been good for the country’s security alignment is enhancing countries’ pose from both sides and Pakistan must in the region. It needs India’s support, University and Visiting Senior Re-
but also for peace in the region. Pakistan bargaining power individually or as know the terms of engagement clearly. and it is also using its relations with In- search Fellow at the Institute of South
has also enjoyed a high profile in multi- groups. This can create a whole new If the US is unreliable, the answer is dia as leverage against Pakistan. Asian Studies, National University of
lateral diplomacy and has had excellent set of opportunities for a wider circle not to avoid a relationship with it. It is The Afghan Taliban are never go- Singapore. Header illustration: Mush-
relations with the Muslim world. of small and middle powers. To en- to have a relationship that is premised ing to abandon the Tehreek-i-Taliban ba Said/ Dawn.com File - Dawn)
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