Fruits of mediation

Measuring success

The prime minister and army chief seemed happy enough with their ‘mediation’ tour. Yet in tangible, quantifiable terms all that has been achieved is Pakistan and Iran agreeing on the need of ‘focal persons’ between Tehran and Riyadh, for which Nawaz still has to “ask Saudi Arabia to also name someone”. And, sadly, expectations that the head of the only Muslim nuclear power, along with his army chief, will broker peace between Iran and Saudi Arabia and help end the cataclysmic sectarian war that has consumed the Middle East will have to wait a while longer.

No doubt both Riyadh and Tehran welcomed the Pakistani initiative. Even before the Sharifs had taken the trouble to fly to both capitals for their “sacred duty”, both Iran and KSA were well aware of the direction the Arabian bloodbath was taking, not to mention the need for Muslim unity, etc, as they were reminded by their Pakistani guests. So the trip was spot-on as far as appearances go, but did not yield anything concrete. Pakistan should have pushed both parties to resume diplomatic relations. And while there was some mention in the press of the Iranians being lectured on this, there were few details about how hard the Saudis were pushed, even though Riyadh broke the diplomatic channel.

It is unlikely, therefore, that the Pakistani government’s “sincere efforts” will bring about any major change in the Middle East. Our position on the Saudi-led coalition also remains strangely vague, despite several attempts by some ministers to explain it. We are part of it, so far, but its agenda is not yet defined, and the principal on-ground players against ISIS – Iran, Syria, etc – have not been invited. And, also, we will no longer be game if our troops are required. But what exactly is our position? There seems some weight in PPP allegations, under such circumstances, that Pakistan is basically just toeing the Saudi line, and appearing good in the process, rather than sincerely pushing for a realistic toning down of tensions in the wider Muslim world.