Leon Panetta, despite continuous demands made by the Pakistani side, asserts that the US will continue to launch drone strikes in North Waziristan. The recent statements issued by him in Kabul and Delhi are indicative of the emerging regional trends. The US is clearly bypassing Pakistan, something that happened when India became the proud recipient of the nuclear deal with the US that the Pakistanis had been waiting for. Whatever excuses the Americans gave for not considering Pakistan for a similar deal does very little to hide the Superpowers motives in the region. It is clearly evident that Pakistan is being marginalized both globally and regionally with various tags of ignominy adorned around its neck.
Surely the American policy both in Afghanistan and Pakistan is being termed as doomed to definite failure as it fails to achieve the objectives due to a lack of clarity and transparency. Further, the continuous unilateral attacks and operations such as the OBL raid in Abbottabad last year and the Salala tragedy exemplify the US regional designs. According to a study carried out by the Jinnah Institute in Pakistan, the Pakistani policy elite perceive America’s Afghanistan strategy to date to be largely inconsistent with Pakistan’s interests.
Pakistan has always insisted on an immediate, yet patient effort at inclusive reconciliation involving all major Afghan stakeholders, including the main Afghan Taliban factions. The American initiative of embarking upon the reconciliation process without including either Afghanistan or Pakistan goes only to create mistrust between all stakeholders, thus proving counterproductive for the reinstatement of peace in the region.
Despite the fact that Pakistan has provided significant counterterrorism and strategic support to the U.S. which has proven costly in terms of Pakistan’s militant backlash, there is a strong feeling in Pakistan that they will once again be left bearing the burden of this war as a Taliban takeover is being predicted. Further, the growing Indian footprint in Afghanistan backed by the US would certainly manipulate the endgame that further alters the regional politics thus adding to the instability of South Asia.
PROFESSOR KABIL KHAN
Peshawar