Unprovoked, but not entirely unexpected
The million dollar question: was it just a matter of time or did we really believe that there was a deep and honest change of heart? Right now, we are seeing history repeat itself as the United States pulls the plug on its now decade old ‘new’ relationship with Pakistan.
I guess the situation created will leave Pakistan in the driving seat with regard to bringing closure; there are very few alternatives given the circumstances. Since the successful ‘taking out’ of OBL on May 2, officialdom in DC has turned the barrels of its weaponry directly on the Pakistan administration, the military included. The rhetoric or ‘plain talking’ as it is termed has cemented the opinion that most held: Pakistan will be dumped unceremoniously yet again.
For those who believed there may really be a long term relationship in the offing – I readily admit to being one of them – are shamefacedly looking at their feet, suffering the agony that goes with it. With not just a sense of déjà vu but one of deep anguish, we must recall the ‘friends not masters’ philosophy. It has been 5 decades of being ditched, repeatedly, at the altar.
So who is it that hasn’t learnt the lesson? Is it Pakistan, because we readily accept the hand offered in a moment of great need to the US or is it the US that has not learned to trust and accept the Pakistani culture and way of doing things? Yes, they are two different cultures: a marriage of strange bedfellows. Therefore there must be greater give and take to sustain the connection. Unless sustaining it was never the real intention.
One was led to believe that Hillary Clinton, at the first strategic meeting held in DC last year, had responded to Pakistani delegates on the subject of improving the US image with the Pakistani nation in confirming that the US was viewing the current interaction with a long term aspect. The Pakistani side requested that the US take concrete steps in the form of nation building projects and serious investments. We are told that, at the time, she had assured at the highest level that this would happen. I see nothing finite on the ground. I’d like to be corrected. It would vindicate my position perhaps.
It all started with “bombing us back into the stone age”. Not the best way to start a relationship. Then there was the “do more” mantra. That was repeated to the point of becoming utterly boring. Limited ISAF and NATO success in effectively combating the Taliban and Al-Qaeda led forces was not introspectively examined; instead ISI was targeted as the cause of most failures. Pakistan looked at this philosophically until the OBL discovery blew up in our face.
My view has been that OBL and his extended outfit outsmarted the combined intelligence resources of the two partners in the war on terror. The US forces were unable to find clues to his whereabouts at the height of the aggression and this continued for a decade after. Obviously, if OBL was able to elude discovery by the most modern technology of the US, to avoid Pakistan’s antiquated resources was no issue at all. There is no reason to ignore this fact and hold Pakistan entirely responsible. Anyway, they “got their man”. And, in doing so, audaciously violated international borders.
The nation’s fury grew with the stepping up of US drone attacks on the borders, the lack of serious regret at the incidents with increasing collateral damage to civilian population and culminated with the recent attack on Pakistani forces, and finally exploded with the “unprovoked” attack four days ago. Government has, thus, withstood protests within and ignored the “stop the drones” calls and blockages of NATO supply chain allowing them to fade away. This time, however, with the political scene charged and the armed forces reacting under attack, it has reacted as effectively as it can. One can find no fault with this.
This war may not have been ours it was brought to us. Not entirely by the war on terror but by the millions of foreigners who took refuge in the north and our misguided brethren. Bombs began to explode in our cities and thousands of innocent people were brutally killed. It destroyed security and badly hit our commerce. We had no option but to jointly defeat these destabilising forces at a huge cost.
And right now we have been pushed to the point of having no option but to defend ourselves the best way we can. The DGMO acknowledged that a military response was not an option owing to the technological disparity. We are exercising the limited options available. There is no point in being at a conference to scale down the war when, in fact, Pakistan is looking down the barrel of the gun, being held entirely responsible for the failure of the ISAF/NATO combine in Afghanistan.
To quote Robert Dreyfuss, “The closing may yet be reversed, but it’s a sign of Pakistan’s ability to undermine or even shut down the US war effort. (It’s not really possible to supply US forces by using the so-called northern route …) As always, Pakistan has the United States over a barrel.” Let us hope sanity prevails across the pond before the cookie crumbles. An unconditional apology would be a good start.
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