JUNE 6, 2014
Pakistan should
prepare itself to tackle any adverse fallout from the uncertain future of
Afghanistan by dealing the country as an autonomous friend and neighbour rather
than handling it as its province.
These views were
expressed at a public hearing on the withdrawal of US Forces from Afghanistan
and its implications on Pakistan, which was organised by the Senate Standing
Committee on Foreign Relations.
The open hearing
was attended by present and former diplomats, policymakers, parliamentarians,
journalists and representatives of civil society, who agreed on the point that
Pakistan should have a neutral policy about Afghanistan and should take extra
measures to handle the fallouts of the situation — as experienced after the
disintegration of USSR in the 90s.
“Afghanistan is an
independent country and not a province of Pakistan. Our military and civilian
establishment should have a neutral foreign policy about the neighbouring
country,” said Senate Standing Committee on Foreign Relations chairman Senator
Haji Muhammad Adeel.
“The Afghans should
be allowed to decide their own fate as an independent nation.” Any attempt to
indulge in their internal affairs would not only leave a negative impact on
Afghanistan but Pakistan itself will also suffer from such policies, he
maintained.
Senator Adeel
suggested that there should not be any policy on the basis of likes and
dislikes, in fact transparent diplomacy should be maintained with whosoever
comes in power in Kabul.
Former diplomat Dr
Maliha Lodhi said that Pakistan should work with the international stakeholders
eyeing the best-case scenarios but should also be prepared for the worse. She
urged the need to learn from history, “Pakistan should carefully assess what
might happen across its western border and promptly take appropriate actions.”
We failed to take
these steps 25 years ago, when the Russians were withdrawing from Afghanistan,
leaving Pakistan in an awkward state which it was not prepared to deal with, she
said. “We ignore the lessons of history at our own peril.”
Dr Lodhi described
how Pakistan, with such a high stake in the success of Afghanistan’s
transition, has offered to extend whatever help Kabul may want to support its
transition of power.
Former ambassador
to Afghanistan Qazi Hamayun suggested that Pakistan should secure itself from
any fallout from the Afghan scenario by remaining neutral in the Afghanistan’s
internal issue. He noted that Afghan peace is a fragile matter and Pakistan
should assess the situation to check any fallout.
Former ISI chief
Asad Durrani, however, defended the Pak-Afghan policy during the 80s against
the USSR, saying that Pakistan had also an option to remain silent, but
whatever it did was in the better interest of the country as the region was
under war and Pakistan could not be remain a neutral in such a situation.
“Every policy was based on good intention and its results could be different”,
he added.
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